Academic Commons Search Resultshttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog.rss?f%5Bdepartment_facet%5D%5B%5D=International+and+Public+Affairs&q=&rows=500&sort=record_creation_date+desc
Academic Commons Search Resultsen-usClimate change in the Fertile Crescent and implications of the recent Syrian droughthttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:184899
Kelley, Colin P.; Mohtadi, Shahrzad Zarrin; Cane, Mark A.; Kushnir, Yochanan; Seager, Richardhttp://dx.doi.org/10.7916/D8MG7NDBThu, 26 Mar 2015 00:00:00 +0000Significance: There is evidence that the 2007−2010 drought contributed to the conflict in Syria. It was the worst drought in the instrumental record, causing widespread crop failure and a mass migration of farming families to urban centers. Century-long observed trends in precipitation, temperature, and sea-level pressure, supported by climate model results, strongly suggest that anthropogenic forcing has increased the probability of severe and persistent droughts in this region, and made the occurrence of a 3-year drought as severe as that of 2007−2010 2 to 3 times more likely than by natural variability alone. We conclude that human influences on the climate system are implicated in the current Syrian conflict. Abstract: Before the Syrian uprising that began in 2011, the greater Fertile Crescent experienced the most severe drought in the instrumental record. For Syria, a country marked by poor governance and unsustainable agricultural and environmental policies, the drought had a catalytic effect, contributing to political unrest. We show that the recent decrease in Syrian precipitation is a combination of natural variability and a long-term drying trend, and the unusual severity of the observed drought is here shown to be highly unlikely without this trend. Precipitation changes in Syria are linked to rising mean sea-level pressure in the Eastern Mediterranean, which also shows a long-term trend. There has been also a long-term warming trend in the Eastern Mediterranean, adding to the drawdown of soil moisture. No natural cause is apparent for these trends, whereas the observed drying and warming are consistent with model studies of the response to increases in greenhouse gases. Furthermore, model studies show an increasingly drier and hotter future mean climate for the Eastern Mediterranean. Analyses of observations and model simulations indicate that a drought of the severity and duration of the recent Syrian drought, which is implicated in the current conflict, has become more than twice as likely as a consequence of human interference in the climate system.Climate change, Agriculture, Environmental studiesszm2105, mac6, yk16, rs229Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, International and Public AffairsArticlesRethinking the Growth Strategy: Competition is the Way toward Strengthening Agriculturehttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:184309
Ito, Takatoshi; Honma, Masayoshihttp://dx.doi.org/10.7916/D8WH2NWJFri, 13 Mar 2015 00:00:00 +0000Japan’s dairy industry is under heavy governmental regulation. This has serious consequences; for instance, controls on the imports of butter leads to periodic butter shortages. The collection of raw milk from farmers is monopolized by agricultural cooperatives in the region, which blend the raw milk from many farmers and sell it to dairy processing firms. Therefore, there is no opportunity for farmers to save money, increase quality and reap the benefits of a higher quality product. Regarding pork, Japan’s tariffs are highly irregular. Japan imposes a specific tariff of ¥482 per kilogram on inexpensive pork parts imported at a CIF price less than ¥64.53 per kg. For imported pork at the CIF import price, which is between ¥64.53 and ¥524 per kg, Japan uses a “gate price system” in which the tariff equals the difference between the benchmark price of ¥546.53 and the CIF import price. Imported pork products that are more expensive than the ¥524 per kg (expensive pork parts) are subject to a conventional ad valorem tariff of 4.3%. This system maintains a domestic price of at least ¥524/kg regardless of quality. It also produces a huge incentive to lie about the true import price. Another incentive is to mix expensive and cheap pork parts to reduce the average import price to ¥524 per kg in order to minimize tariffs to be paid. This system discourages Japanese farmers from producing high quality pork, since expensive imports may be sold cheaper as part of the mixed pork shipment. Agricultural reform should be fundamental, not cosmetic, since the whole system needs to be overhauled. The realization of “Strengthening Agriculture” through Abenomics depends on the success or failure of these reforms.Businessti2164Center on Japanese Economy and Business, International and Public AffairsWorking papersComments on the U.S. Social Cost of Carbonhttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:182531
Ceronsky, Megan; Revesz, Richard L.; Keohane, Nathaniel O.; Cleetus, Rachel; Convery, Frank J.; Schwartz, Jason A.; Howard, Peter H.; Sterner, Thomas; Johnson, Laurie T.; Wagner, Gernothttp://dx.doi.org/10.7916/D8T152FCMon, 09 Feb 2015 00:00:00 +0000Our organizations respectfully submit these comments regarding EPA’s use of the Interagency Working Group’s valuation of the Social Cost of Carbon to assess the costs and benefits of its greenhouse gas emissions guidelines for existing fossil fuel-fired power plants (the Clean Power Plan). Our organizations have separately and independently submitted other comments regarding the proposed emissions guidelines themselves. We strongly affirm that the current Social Cost of Carbon (SCC) values are sufficiently robust and accurate to continue to be the basis for regulatory analysis going forward. As demonstrated below, if anything, current values are significant underestimates of the SCC. As economic and scientific research continues to develop in the future, the value should be revised, and we also offer recommendations for that future revision.Climate change, Environmental lawgw2245International and Public AffairsReportsThe Rebound Effect and Energy Efficiency Policyhttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:182537
Gillingham, Kenneth; Rapson, David; Wagner, Gernothttp://dx.doi.org/10.7916/D8JM28F3Mon, 09 Feb 2015 00:00:00 +0000What do we know about the size of the rebound effect? Should we believe claims that energy efficiency improvements lead to an increase in energy use? This paper clarifies what the rebound effect is, and provides a guide for economists and policymakers interested in its magnitude. We describe how some papers in the literature consider the rebound effect from a costless exogenous increase in energy efficiency, while others examine the effects of a particular energy efficiency policy—a distinction that leads to very different welfare and policy implications. We present the most reliable evidence available quantifying the energy efficiency rebound, and discuss areas where estimation is extraordinarily difficult. Along these lines, we offer a new way of thinking about the macroeconomic rebound effect. Overall, the existing research provides little support for the so-called “backfire” hypothesis. Still, much remains to be understood, particularly relating to induced innovation and productivity growth.Climate change, Energygw2245International and Public AffairsReportsMobilizing the Private Sectorhttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:182528
Ghosh, Arunabha; Müller, Benito; Pizer, William; Wagner, Gernothttp://dx.doi.org/10.7916/D82J69P4Mon, 09 Feb 2015 00:00:00 +0000In recent years, public sector funding, in general, and for the support of activities in developing countries, in particular, has become more and more ‘results’ and ‘performance’ oriented. The Governing Instrument of the recently established Green Climate Fund (GCF), for example, tasks the GCF Board with establishing ‘a framework for the monitoring and evaluation of performance … of activities supported by the Fund’ and approving a ‘results measurement framework with guidelines and appropriate performance indicators’. There are different methods by which performance can be ‘indicated’ (or even ‘measured’) in this context. The World Bank, for example, uses Country Performance Ratings which are based on its Country Policy and Institutional Assessment (CPIA) and country implementation performance indices based on its Annual Report on Portfolio Performance. In the CPIA, countries are assessed with respect to 16 different criteria in terms of a largely qualitative 6-level ranking. The focus of this brief, however, is on activities that are associated with quantitative performance indicators, i.e. performance assessed in terms of measured quantities − such as tonnes (of carbon), kWh, or hectares − as carried out by the private sector.Climate change, Environmental economicsgw2245International and Public AffairsReportsWhere Local Kings Rule: Long-Term Impacts of Precolonial Institutions and Geography on Access to Public Infrastructure Services in Nigeriahttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:181588
Archibong, Belindahttp://dx.doi.org/10.7916/D8G15ZNQFri, 23 Jan 2015 00:00:00 +0000Though previous works have discussed the benefits of precolonial ethnic state centralization for development in Africa, the findings, of a positive relationship between centralization and development and the mechanisms provided, of local accountability of ethnic state leaders, do not explain the heterogeneity in outcomes, reflected in the unequal distribution of access to public services among formerly centralized states today. Here, I find that centralization has had a negative effect on access to federally administrated, high state control goods when cooperation failed between ethnic state and autocratic federal government leaders in the kind of cooperative federalist regimes that defined much of colonial and postcolonial Africa. I focus on the case of Nigeria, and specifically, I find a significant negative effect of centralization on access to high federal state control goods for centralized states whose leaders failed to cooperate with the autocratic military regime, and whose jurisdictions were subsequently subject to a punishment regime, typified by underinvestment in public services, with lasting impacts till today. I also posit that the long-term effects of this punishment can be seen in the relatively lower reported trust in institutions of federal authority over traditional institutions today from respondents from these previously punished, centralized precolonial states. The results are robust to a number of controls and instrumenting for centralization with an ecological diversity index.Political science, African studiesba2207International and Public AffairsReportsFairness and Freight-Handlers: Local Labor-Market Conditions and Wage-Fairness Perceptions in a Trucking Firmhttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:180784
Verhoogen, Eric A.; Burks, Stephen V.; Carpenter, Jeffrey P.http://dx.doi.org/10.7916/D88914MQTue, 16 Dec 2014 00:00:00 +0000The authors draw on an internal attitude survey conducted yearly from 1996 to 2000 in the freight-handling terminals of a unionized trucking firm to investigate the effect of local labor market conditions on employee wage-fairness perceptions. Their research design exploits the fact that local managers had no discretion to vary wage rates in response to local labor market conditions; local economic shocks thus generated exogenous variation in the attractiveness of the wage paid by the firm relative to employees’ options in the outside labor market. The authors find robust associations between the wage-fairness perceptions of employees in the firm and two indicators of local conditions—the rate of unemployment and the wages of similar workers in the outside market. They argue that these correlations reflect a causal relationship: an increase in unemployment or a decrease in outside wages led workers to perceive their wage to be more fair.Economics, Laborev2124Economics, International and Public AffairsArticlesOrganizational Barriers to Technology Adoption: Evidence from Soccer-Ball Producers in Pakistanhttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:180778
Atkin, David; Chaudhry, Azam; Chaudry, Shamyla; Khandelwal, Amit K.; Verhoogen, Eric A.http://dx.doi.org/10.7916/D8S75F36Tue, 16 Dec 2014 00:00:00 +0000This paper studies technology adoption in a cluster of soccer-ball producers in Sialkot, Pakistan. Our research team invented a new cutting technology that reduces waste of the primary raw material. We allocated the technology to a random subset of producers. Despite the arguably unambiguous net benefits of the technology for nearly all firms, after 15 months take-up remained puzzlingly low. We hypothesize that an important reason for the lack of adoption is a misalignment of incentives within firms: the key employees (cutters and printers) are typically paid piece rates, with no incentive to reduce waste, and the new technology slows them down, at least initially. Fearing reductions in their effective wage, employees resist adoption in various ways, including by misinforming owners about the value of the technology. To investigate this hypothesis, we implemented a second experiment among the firms to which we originally gave the technology: we offered one cutter and one printer per firm a lump-sum payment, approximately equal to a monthly wage, that was conditional on them demonstrating competence in using the technology in the presence of the owner. This incentive payment, small from the point of view of the firm, had a significant positive effect on adoption. We interpret the results as supportive of the hypothesis that misalignment of incentives within firms is an important barrier to technology adoption in our setting.Economics, Labor, Economics, Economics, Commerce-Businessak2796, ev2124Business, Economics, International and Public AffairsWorking papersSustainable New York City: A Work in Progresshttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:178392
Cohen, Steven Alanhttp://dx.doi.org/10.7916/D82R3Q8NFri, 10 Oct 2014 00:00:00 +0000New York City (NYC), under the leadership of Mayor Michael Bloomberg, has been at the forefront of a growing urban sustainability movement through its groundbreaking sustainability strategy - PlaNYC 2030. What are the city’s successes and failures? How can lessons from New York be applied in cities around the world?Sustainabilitysc32Earth Institute, International and Public AffairsArticlesEmploying Strategic Planning in Environmental Regulationhttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:178386
Cohen, Steven Alanhttp://dx.doi.org/10.7916/D8KP80SJFri, 10 Oct 2014 00:00:00 +0000This chapter addresses the issues surrounding effective regulation. Understanding the procedures involved in the development and implementation of regulation is the first step. Cohen then describes the tools of strategic regulation. Next, criticisms of different modes of regulation are discussed. The chapter concludes with a summary of the strategic approach to regulation.Sustainability, Public policysc32Earth Institute, International and Public AffairsBook chaptersThe Irrelevance of Global Climate Talkshttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:178395
Cohen, Steven Alanhttp://dx.doi.org/10.7916/D8T72G2BFri, 10 Oct 2014 00:00:00 +0000After 20 years, it's time to consider a new strategySustainability, Environmental lawsc32Earth Institute, International and Public AffairsArticlesA Strategic Framework for Devolving Responsibility and Functions from Government to the Private Sectorhttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:178377
Cohen, Steven Alanhttp://dx.doi.org/10.7916/D8MP51XXFri, 10 Oct 2014 00:00:00 +0000Whether a function should be performed within or outside government is a very broad issue that relates to personal values and views concerning the relationship between individual and state, as well as a complex set of management issues. Without trying to answer those questions here, this article begins from the premise that a particular function has been judged by the political process to be the responsibility of government. The article seeks to develop an approach for government managers to use when deciding whether to perform the function directly in-house or to perform the function indirectly through the use of a non-governmental organization. The first part of this article begins by delineating distinguishing characteristics of government, nonprofit, and private organizations, and then assesses the degree to which those characteristics impede or facilitate the performance of public functions. The article then develops a framework and a method for making privatization decisions. The decision to privatize requires strategic thinking; this article provides an example of how a strategic framework might be applied by analyzing the issues that would be faced in privatizing a key element of New York City's homeless program.Public administration, Public policysc32Earth Institute, International and Public AffairsArticlesTrends in 20th Century United States Government Ethicshttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:178380
Cohen, Steven Alan; Eimicke, William B.http://dx.doi.org/10.7916/D8C53JG6Fri, 10 Oct 2014 00:00:00 +0000This paper provides a broad overview of five perspectives on the public service ethics agenda, incorporating a current debate which may well emerge as the initial reform agenda of the new millennium. Perspectives explored include the politics/administration dichotomy, the New Public Administration's emphasis on individual responsibility in the context of strong organizational values and norms, the ethical risks of public entrepreneurship, and the recent emergence of spiritualism as a guide to public ethical decision-making. The authors conclude that we are entering a new era of public ethics where performance and morality will be accorded equal priority. They argue that public entrepreneurship is increasingly essential to meet the public's demands for government that works better and costs less. Most public officials will need on-the-job training and/or ethics courses in schools of public policy and administration to competently assess the ethical risks and dangers that a particular policy innovation may encompass.Public administration, Public policysc32, wbe1Earth Institute, International and Public AffairsArticlesWhen Government Is Reinvented, Ethics and Entrepreneurship Can Peacefully Coexisthttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:178383
Cohen, Steven Alan; Eimicke, William B.http://dx.doi.org/10.7916/D83N221JFri, 10 Oct 2014 00:00:00 +0000Article on necessity of public entrepreneurship in governmentPublic administration, Entrepreneurshipsc32, wbe1Earth Institute, International and Public AffairsArticlesCatastrophe and the Public Service: A Case Study of the Government Response to the Destruction of the World Trade Centerhttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:178371
Cohen, Steven Alan; Eimicke, William B.; Horan, Jessicahttp://dx.doi.org/10.7916/D84M934XFri, 10 Oct 2014 00:00:00 +0000The destruction of the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001, resulted in a rapid response by government to evaluate the area and, in subsequent days, to bring the city back to a semblance of normalcy. This article provides a case study of government action in New York city during and after the World Trade Center catastrophe. What is most striking is the skill and intensity of government's response to the emergency and the hard work, dedication, and bravery of New York City's government officials. This article presents government and public service at its finest, under some of the most difficult conditions one can imagine.Public administration, Public policysc32, wbe1Earth Institute, International and Public AffairsArticlesClimate Change 2011: A Status Report on US Policyhttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:178368
Cohen, Steven Alan; Miller, Alisonhttp://dx.doi.org/10.7916/D8D50KK4Fri, 10 Oct 2014 00:00:00 +0000A growing partisan divide in Congress stalled almost all new federal climate policy in 2011. The divide frustrated efforts to pass a cap-and-trade carbon permitting system, spawned a battle between the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Congress, pushed most substantive climate change policy down to the municipal level and hindered US ability to effectively negotiate an international climate agreement. Amid the federal partisan wrangling, US cities have enacted far-sighted climate policy initiatives, and the growing cost of fossil fuels has stimulated investment in renewable energy, edging the country closer to commercially viable alternatives to fossil fuels. These trends could help provide an alternate route to climate mitigation, even without international treaties or national legislation. But the inevitable shift from fossil fuels to renewable energy sources would be greatly hastened by federal action to tax carbon dioxide emissions and use the revenue generate! d to support alternative energy technologies. That action is extremely unlikely to occur unless climate change comes to be seen in the United States as a practical, rather than ideological, issue.Climate change, Sustainabilitysc32, acm2179Earth Institute, International and Public AffairsArticlesEthics and the Public Administratorhttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:178389
Cohen, Steven Alan; Eimicke, William B.http://dx.doi.org/10.7916/D8B56HBTFri, 10 Oct 2014 00:00:00 +0000This article provides an overview and analysis of the practical problems of developing and implementing a code of ethics for public administrators. The article addresses three key issues: (1) What are public ethics and where do they come from? (2) What are the central ethical issues facing public administrators? and (3) Are there practical tools and guidelines to assist public servants to be both ethical and effective public managers? The article concludes with a plea for consideration of ethical issues, and it presents five general ethical principles for public administrators.Public administrationsc32, wbe1Earth Institute, International and Public AffairsArticlesOptions for management of municipal solid waste in New York City: A preliminary comparison of health risks and policy implicationshttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:178374
Moy, Pearl; Krishnan, Nikhil; Ulloa, Priscilla; Cohen, Steven Alan; Brandt-Rauf, Paul W.http://dx.doi.org/10.7916/D8W66JC0Fri, 10 Oct 2014 00:00:00 +0000Landfill disposal and waste-to-energy (WTE) incineration remain the two principal options for managing municipal solid waste (MSW). One critical determinant of the acceptability of these options is the different health risks associated with each. In this analysis relying on published data and exposure modeling, we have performed health risk assessments for landfill disposal versus WTE treatment options for the management of New York City’s MSW. These are based on the realistic scenario of using a waste transfer station (WTS) in Brooklyn and then transporting the untreated MSW by truck to a landfill in Pennsylvania or using a WTE facility in Brooklyn and then transporting the resultant ash by truck to a landfill in Pennsylvania. The overall results indicate that the individual cancer risks for both options would be considered generally acceptable, although the risk from landfilling is approximately 5 times greater than from WTE treatment; the individual non-cancer health risks for both options would be considered generally unacceptable, although once again the risk from landfilling is approximately 5 times greater than from WTE treatment. If one considers only the population in Brooklyn that would be directly affected by the siting of either a WTS or a WTE facility in their immediate neighborhood, individual cancer and non-cancer health risks for both options would be considered generally acceptable, but risks for the former remain considerably higher than for the latter. These results should be considered preliminary due to several limitations of this study such as: consideration of risks only from inhalation exposures; assumption that only volume and not composition of the waste stream is altered by WTE treatment; reliance on data from the literature rather than actual measurements of the sites considered, assuming comparability of the sites. However, the results of studies such as this, in conjunction with ecological, socioeconomic and equity considerations, should prove useful to environmental managers, regulators, policy makers, community representatives and other stakeholders in making sound and acceptable decisions regarding the optimal handling of MSW.Public health, Public policysc32, pwb1Environmental Health Sciences, Earth Institute, International and Public AffairsArticlesSustainability and Management Competencehttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:178398
Cohen, Steven Alanhttp://dx.doi.org/10.7916/D8JQ0ZMWFri, 10 Oct 2014 00:00:00 +0000After decades at the periphery of political and business agendas, sustainability and environmental protection have emerged at the center of our economic and political dialogue. Steven Cohen argues that increasingly, an organisation’s ability to achieve sustainability is seen as an indicator of a well-run organisation.Sustainabilitysc32Earth Institute, International and Public AffairsArticlesAmerica Works' Criminal Justice Program: Providing Second Chances Through Workhttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:177784
Eimicke, William B.; Cohen, Stevenhttp://dx.doi.org/10.7916/D89W0D2NWed, 01 Oct 2014 00:00:00 +0000This report presents a case study of a new program developed by America Works, Incorporated, to assist released prisoners reenter the world of work. The report describes the substantial problem presented by America’s growing prison population, and the related challenge to society by released prisoners. The costs and benefits of programs to train ex-convicts for jobs are discussed. Finally, a profile of America Works and its efforts to assist released prisoners is provided. The paper concludes that the America Works program has been effective in finding private sector employment for ex-offenders.Criminology, Social workwbe1, sc32International and Public AffairsReportsWorld Science Uhttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:177748
Greene, Brian; Dreifus, Claudia; Matiz, A. Mauriciohttp://dx.doi.org/10.7916/D869725QWed, 01 Oct 2014 00:00:00 +0000Brian Greene discusses his latest project, World Science U, with writer Claudia Dreifus. Brian Greene is a professor of physics and mathematics at Columbia University, and is widely recognized for a number of groundbreaking discoveries in superstring theory, including the co-discoveries of mirror symmetry and topology change. His first book for general audiences, The Elegant Universe, was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize, and has sold more than a million copies worldwide. His more recent books, The Fabric of the Cosmos and The Hidden Reality, were both New York Times bestsellers, and inspired the Washington Post to call him "the single best explainer of abstruse concepts in the world today." Greene's latest project, World Science U, brings science education online with innovative digital courses available to anyone with an interest in science. Greene makes frequent media appearances on programs such as Charlie Rose, The Colbert Report and David Letterman. He has hosted two NOVA specials, based on The Elegant Universe and The Fabric of the Cosmos, which were nominated for four Emmy Awards and won a George Foster Peabody Award. Professor Greene is co-director of Columbia's Institute for Strings, Cosmology, and Astroparticle Physics, and with producer Tracy Day, he is co-founder of the World Science Festival. Claudia Dreifus, a journalist and adjunct professor at Columbia's School of International and Public Affairs, is well known for her interviews in the New York Times with leading figures in world politics and science. Maurice Matiz, CCNMTL's acting executive director, moderates the discussion on World Science U, online learning, and the changing role of the university professor.Science educationbg111, cd2106, amm8International and Public Affairs, Mathematics, Columbia Center for New Media Teaching and LearningInterviews and roundtablesEssays on Firm Behavior In Indiahttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:175747
Chaurey, Ritamhttp://dx.doi.org/10.7916/D87D2S86Mon, 07 Jul 2014 11:39:28 +0000The private sector in developing countries plays a key role in job-creation and is central to economic development and poverty alleviation. Governments around the world use various policies and regulations targeting firms in an attempt to foster growth. This dissertation focuses on the interplay between government policies, firm behavior, and labor markets in India.
In Chapter 1, I study the impact of a location-based tax incentive scheme in India. Location-based policies that target particular geographic regions are widely used by governments, but there have been few rigorous evaluations of their causal impacts especially in the context of developing countries. Using aggregated and firm-level panel data, I find large increases in employment, total output, fixed capital, and the number of firms as a result of the program. These increases are due to both the growth of existing firms as well as the entry of new firms. There is supporting evidence that the new firms entering the treated regions are larger and more productive. I find no evidence for relocation of firms or spillovers in industrial activity between treatment and control areas. Finally, using data from household surveys, I show that wages of workers rise but find no changes in housing rents or migration across the treated and control regions. My results therefore suggest that the policy increased welfare, and I also conclude that the policy was cost-effective. This provides support for place-based policies to correct for regional economic disparities, especially in settings with low labor mobility.
In the next chapter, I focus on the effects of a place-based policy on informal firms. The informal sector in India is a major component of economic activity covering more than 80% of the workforce. More often than not, the informal sector is beyond the ambit of tax authorities, hurting public finances in India. In Chapter 2, I study the impact of the federally financed location-based tax incentive scheme (studied in Chapter 1) on informal firms in India. Using a difference-in-differences approach with bordering districts, neighboring states, and major states as control groups, I find no evidence for increases in employment, total output, gross value added, and registration status for informal firms on average. However, separating informal firms into those that do not hire regular workers (Own Account Manufacturing Enterprises) and those that hire workers (Non-directory manufacturing enterprises/Directory Manufacturing Enterprises) reveals heterogeneous effects. I find that the policy change led to a higher likelihood of registration by NDME/DMEs but no effect on OAMEs. The policy change did not impact the size of these different kinds of firms. This chapter provides suggestive evidence that tax-exemption schemes can be a useful policy tool to incentivize informal firms to register.
In Chapter 3, I revisit the contentious labor laws in India and their effects on hiring decisions of firms faced with demand shocks. Labor regulations in India differ by states and apply differently across types of laborers. The most restrictive laws make it harder to fire permanent workers for firms. However, these laws do not apply to workers hired through contractors (contract workers). Using firm-level data from India, I find that compared to firms in flexible labor regulations, those in more restrictive labor regimes hire more contract workers as a response to transitory local demand shocks. I find no differential response in hiring of permanent workers by firms faced with these shocks. This suggests that firms circumvent labor laws by hiring workers indirectly through contractors in the face of economic fluctuations.Economicsrc2556Economics, International and Public AffairsDissertationsEssays in Political Economy and Crisishttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:175969
Wilse-Samson, Laurencehttp://dx.doi.org/10.7916/D80R9MJNMon, 07 Jul 2014 00:00:00 +0000My research has two main themes --- the link between political economy and economic development, and the causes and effects of economic crises and long recessions. This dissertation samples from some of this ongoing research. The relationship between economic development and democracy is key in political economy. Many commentators have suggested that economic growth increases support for democracy. One proposed mechanism is that modernization, by reducing the demand for low-skilled labor, increases the willingness of elites, particularly in agriculture, to extend the franchise. In Chapter 1 I use subnational variation in South Africa to test this mechanism. I employ national shocks to the mining sector's demand for native black workers and cross-sectional variation in labor market competition induced by apartheid to estimate the effect of black labor scarcity on wages, capital intensity, and changes in partisan voting preferences. I find that reductions in the supply of foreign mine labor following the sudden withdrawal of workers from Malawi and Mozambique (and the increased demand for native black workers) increased mechanization on the mines and on farms competing with mines for labor. I then show that these induced structural changes resulted in differential increases in pro-political reform vote shares in the open districts relative to closed districts, even as mining districts became more conservative and voted more to maintain the non-democratic regime. Chapter 2 also explores issues related to the close relationships between economic and political institutions. In this chapter, together with my coauthor Sebastien Turban, we show how sovereign debt spreads are impacted by news about executive term limits. Political institutions matter for countries' cost of borrowing. We use an event-study to analyze the markets' response to new information about executive term limits over 101 events in seven emerging markets. Investors respond significantly to news about restrictions on those limits, lowering risk spreads. The one day abnormal returns following news about a restriction is 2 percentage points. Over ten days, the cumulative abnormal return is 5 percentage points. News about term limits extensions are not significant in the medium run. The results are robust to a non-parametric test and are confirmed when looking at the behavior of sovereign CDS prices. Chapter 3 starts the second part of this dissertation which is an investigation into the housing-related aspects of the recent crisis which began as a "subprime crisis" before it became the "Great Recession". In particular, this chapter focuses on the institutional details underpinning these markets. It also serves to set up the analysis in the following chapter which looks at one of the potentially important mechanisms which amplified the severity of the housing crisis. One important feature emerging from this analysis is that it appears that protections for home mortgage creditors were strengthened in the period preceding the subprime crisis. This may have both increased lending, but also the difficulty of modifying home loans ex post. This is more problematic to the extent that there are negative externalities from foreclosures. Chapter 4, co-authored work with David Munroe, shows that completed foreclosures cause neighboring foreclosure lings. We estimate this relationship using administrative data on home foreclosures and sales in Cook County, IL, instrumenting completed foreclosures with randomly assigned chancery-court judges. A completed foreclosure causes 0.5 to 0.7 additional foreclosure lings within 0.1 miles, an effect that persists for several years. Contagion is driven by borrowers on the margins of default, not those severely at risk. We find evidence that borrowers learn about lender behavior from neighboring foreclosures. Finally, a foreclosure causes an increase in housing sales among relatively low-quality properties.Economicslhw2110Economics, International and Public AffairsDissertationsEssays on the Economics of Statelessness and State Formationhttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:175876
Sanchez de la Sierra, Raulhttp://dx.doi.org/10.7916/D8QF8R1MMon, 07 Jul 2014 00:00:00 +0000This dissertation empirically examines economic exchange in the absence of the state. While economic analysis focuses traditionally on economic exchange within a state able to enforce property rights, functioning states are an anomalous environment in the development process. However, a fundamental problem is that in the absence of a functioning state, there is no data collection capacity. In order to observe economic exchange in the absence of a state, I focus on a collapsed state in the current period: the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). As a foundation for this dissertation, I conducted fieldwork in areas of the Eastern provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo that are removed from the central state. I managed a team of 12 surveyors, as well as a team of 20 traders, in order to observe economic exchange in such areas. The DRC is a well suited location to study the rules that govern economic exchange in the absence of the state. The central state is considered a failed state", the second weakest state in the world. Lacking a state to protect property rights and provide a judicial system, the economy has organized informally. Actors independent of the state regularly use coercion to define property rights. Contracts are enforced under the threat of social sanctions, or the threat of village armed men who administer disputes. To analyze economic exchange without a state, I use standard economic analysis and standard econometrics but I am constrained to introduce different notions than the ones on which traditional economic analysis usually relies (Acemoglu and Wolitzky, 2011, Grossman, 1999, Hirshleifer, 1995). Instead of assuming that property rights are stable, I allow some agents to use coercion in order to dene property rights over goods and labor services. In anarchy, coercion can lead to large efficiency losses, since uncoordinated coercive actors do not internalize the distortions they generate on the incentives of those who produce (Grossman, 1999). This leads me to the question of Chapter 1: when will individuals with a comparative advantage in coercion organize violence in a particular location, and hold a "monopoly of violence"? Since a dominant view across disciplines views a "monopoly of violence" as a sufficient characterization of the state and traces back state origins to coercion and organized crime in medieval Europe (Tilly, 1985), my exercise uncovers the economic forces that lead to the formation of states - whether these monopolies of violence are recognized as states by the international community or not. However, in this exercise, I take the notion of the state as a "monopoly of violence" as given. But is this a useful view of the state? Why should any monopoly of violence, even those with purely criminal motives, act as states? Olson (1993) endows this view of the state with theoretical foundations: since criminals who hold a monopoly of violence are partial residual claimants through the taxes they collect, it is in their interest to protect economic activity, promote growth. Indeed, by doing so they can increase the tax revenues they collect. Therefore, in Chapter 2, I confront these theoretical foundations to the data. I examine in detail the behavior of village monopolies of violence held by armed men in Eastern Congo, and introduce economic analysis to predict state-like behavior: optimal taxation, public goods provision, and popular support. I go a step further to rene this view of the state, and show that the view of the state as a "monopoly of violence" is useful only if the time horizon is long and the monopoly of violence is uncontested. Once I have established the economic causes of state formation and the links between organized crime and states, I turn to the impact of the state on economic organization. In Chapter 3, I implement a field experiment that allows me to observe the impact of the penetration of the state legal system. I find that the state legal system allows for an increase in trade, and does not crowd-out pre-existing social mechanisms generating trust and trade. However, there are limits to the eectiveness of the formal system of contract enforcement. Indeed, I nd that only the groups which have captured the state benefit from the leverage provided by the legal system. This confirms the view of the state, as an organization that holds a monopoly of violence but which can be captured by a subset of the population. In what follows, I describe each chapter in more detail. In Chapter 1, I focus on the following question: why do states arise, and when do they failto arise? A dominant view across disciplines is that states arise when violent actors impose a "monopoly of violence" in order to extract taxes (Tilly, 1985). One key fact underlies all existing studies: statistics exist only after the state is formed. In this chapter, I provide the first econometric evidence on the determinants of state formation at their early stages. As a foundation for this chapter, I conducted fieldwork in areas of Eastern Congo removed from control by the central state, managing a team that collected village-level panel data on current armed groups. I develop a model that introduces optimal taxation theory to the decision of armed groups to form local "monopolies of violence", and argue that the returns to such decision hinge on their ability to tax the local population. A sharp, exogenous rise in the price of a bulky commodity used in the electronics industry, coltan, leads armed groups to impose a "monopoly of violence" in coltan villages. A later increase in the price of gold, easier to conceal and hence more dicult to tax, does not. Results from auxiliary tests provideadditional support to the theory. The findings support the hypothesis that the expected Revenue from taxation, in particular tax base elasticity, is a determinant of state formation. In Chapter 2, I go a step further, and challenge the theory associating monopolies of violence to state-like behavior. A dominant view across disciplines defines states as a monopoly of violence" and argues that states are a developed form of successful organized crime. But, is this a useful definition of the state? If current states are monopolies of violence and also engage in state-like behavior, this may be the result of a long historical process unrelated to the fact that they are a "monopoly of violence". In this chapter, I examine this view of the state empirically, and provide one of the rst studies with econometric evidence linking criminal "monopolies of violence" before they develop into the states as most of us know them, to state-like behavior. To observe the behavior of criminal "monopolies of violence", I draw on the same data collection exercise as in Chapter 1. I apply optimal taxation theory to armed groups, and show that armed groups will tax and promote growth like states whenever their "monopoly of violence" is uncontested. Based on this data, I find that criminal "monopolies of violence" consistently provide public goods, develop popular support, and elaborate taxation schemes consistent with optimal taxation and European medieval states. In addition, using the timing of a peace agreement as an instrument for the presence of armed men in the village, I establish that the village "monopolies of violence" have a positive impact on economic activity. In 2003, a peace agreement (Sun-city agreement) led a large number of village "monopolies of violence" to relocate, in order to integrate the national government. This led to a security vacuum. I find that the vacuum caused by this peace agreement led to reductions in economic activity. I then use the timing of a large scale military operation in order to instrument for changes in the time horizon of existing village "monopolies of violence", which came under threat as a result of the military operation. I find that when their "monopoly of violence" comes under threat, armed groups turn from partial expropriation through stable taxation with full commitment, to full-scale violent expropriations. These findings support the view that the origins and workings of states can be obtained from criminal "monopolies of violence", but only if they have a stable time horizon. In Chapter 3, I turn to the experimental component of the dissertation. Having established the causes that lead to the emergence of states - taxation and coercion - I investigate how to take advantage of the state in order to increase trade in contexts where distrust prevents trade to occur. Absent states to enforce contracts, societies may develop group-based mechanisms to generate trade when commitment problems prevail (Greif, 1993). However, groups are often fragmented. Can expanding access to the state legal system complement social mechanisms of contract enforcement sustained by groups? Or does legal intermediation by the state crowd them out? In this chapter, I provide evidence on the impact of state contracts on trade. As a foundation for this chapter, I created a home delivery business in East Congo. Traders sell a domestic good in households of different ethnic groups, and commit to deliver the good in the future. Shared ethnicity and formal contracts are equally effective at increasing trade by sustaining trust. Furthermore, contracts do not crowd-out ethnic group based mechanisms of trust production. Why do contracts increase trust? Results from a last experiment suggest that contracts are enforceable. However, they only protect claimants of ethnic groups that have captured the state administration. These findings suggest that even the state apparatus is embedded in the social structure, and expanding the reach of the state may have positive welfare effects, only for the groups that have vested control in the state institutions. Each of the three chapters is self-contained, so a reader interested in only one of these parts can focus on only one chapter. Each chapter contains an overview of the context relevant for that chapter. There are overlaps in the descriptions of the context. Chapters one and two are based on the same data collection exercise, but are the focus of different questions and different variables. Chapter 3 draws on a different field experiment.Economics, Political sciencers2861Economics, International and Public AffairsDissertationsEssays in Internal and International Migrationhttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:175909
Monras, Joanhttp://dx.doi.org/10.7916/D85H7DDRMon, 07 Jul 2014 00:00:00 +0000This dissertation investigates how internal migration spreads local shocks to the national market. The first chapter describes a dynamic model of internal migration where in equilibrium there are always positive internal migration flows across locations. When a shock in one of these location happens, internal migration flows are diverted away from the shocked locations, spreading the shock nationally. The second chapter explains how this is the main mechanism through which international migration is absorbed. The third chapter, documents how this exact same mechanism helps to mitigate the disproportionate effect that the Great Recession had on particular locations.Economics, Economics, Laborjm3364Economics, International and Public AffairsDissertationsEssays on Infrastructure and Developmenthttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:176618
Tompsett, Annahttp://dx.doi.org/10.7916/D8513WCRMon, 07 Jul 2014 00:00:00 +0000Spending on infrastructure accounts for several percentage points of global wprld product, reflecting its perceived importance to growth and development. Previous literature has made limited progress in providing unbiased estimates of its impacts, or causal evidence about policy changes that can alter this impact. Primarily, this is because of the selection problem: locations in which infrastructure is built differ from those in which it is not built. This dissertation provides evidence towards three important questions related to infrastructure and development. First, what role does manmade transport infrastructure play in determining and maintaining patterns of economic geography? Second, to what degree does the relocation of economic activity in response to changes in the transport infrastructure network affect estimates of the economic impact of those changes? Third, what is the effect of involving beneficiary communities in decision-making on projects to improve local infrastructure? To address the selection problem, Chapters 2 and 3 exploit quasi-experimental variation in distance to a land transport route created by the opening and location of bridges over major rivers in the historical United States, using a new dataset containing every bridge built over the Mississippi and Ohio rivers. Chapter 4 presents evidence from a randomized experiment in Bangladesh.Sustainability, EconomicsSustainable Development, International and Public AffairsDissertationsCivil Warhttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:175089
Blattman, Christopher J.; Miguel, Edwardhttp://dx.doi.org/10.7916/D8QC01MTThu, 26 Jun 2014 00:00:00 +0000Most nations have experienced an internal armed conflict since 1960. Yet while civil war is central to many nations' development, it has stood at the periphery of economics research and teaching. The past decade has witnessed a long overdue explosion of research into war's causes and consequences. We summarize progress, identify weaknesses, and chart a path forward. Why war? Existing theory is provocative but incomplete, omitting advances in behavioral economics and making little progress in key areas, like why armed groups form and cohere, or how more than two armed sides compete. Empirical work finds that low per capita incomes and slow economic growth are both robustly linked to civil war. Yet there is little consensus on the most effective policies to avert conflicts or promote postwar recovery. Cross-country analysis of war will benefit from more attention to causal identification and stronger links to theory. We argue that micro-level analysis and case studies are also crucial to decipher war's causes, conduct, and consequences. We bring a growth theoretic approach to the study of conflict consequences to highlight areas for research, most of all the study of war's impact on institutions. We conclude with a plea for new and better data.Political science, Economicscb2875Political Science, International and Public AffairsArticlesThe Consequences of Child Soldieringhttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:175086
Blattman, Christopher J.; Anan, Jeanniehttp://dx.doi.org/10.7916/D8V40SB5Thu, 26 Jun 2014 00:00:00 +0000Little is known about the impacts of military service on human capital and labor market outcomes due to an absence of data as well as sample selection: recruits are self-selected, screened, and selectively survive. We examine the case of Uganda, where rebel recruitment methods provide exogenous variation in conscription. Economic and educational impacts are widespread and persistent: schooling falls by nearly a year, skilled employment halves, and earnings drop by a third. Military service seems to be a poor substitute for schooling. Psychological distress is evident among those exposed to severe war violence and is not limited to ex-combatants.African studies, Military studies, Social researchcb2875Political Science, International and Public AffairsArticlesFrom Violence to Voting: War and Political Participation in Ugandahttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:175092
Blattman, Christopher J.http://dx.doi.org/10.7916/D8KK98WJThu, 26 Jun 2014 00:00:00 +0000What is the political legacy of violent conflict? I present evidence for a link from past violence to increased political engagement among excombatants. The evidence comes from northern Uganda, where rebel recruitment generated quasiexperimental variation in who was conscripted by abduction. Survey data suggest that abduction leads to substantial increases in voting and community leadership, largely due to elevated levels of violence witnessed. Meanwhile, abduction and violence do not appear to affect nonpolitical participation. These patterns are not easily explained by conventional theories of participation, including mobilization by elites, differential costs, and altruistic preferences. Qualitative interviews suggest that violence may lead to personal growth and political activation, a possibility supported by psychological research on the positive effects of traumatic events. Although the generalizability of these results requires more evidence to judge, the findings challenge our understanding of political behavior and point to important new avenues of research.Political science, African studiescb2875Political Science, International and Public AffairsArticlesChildren and War: How “Soft” Research Can Answer the Hard Questions in Political Sciencehttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:175095
Blattman, Christopher J.http://dx.doi.org/10.7916/D8FT8J57Thu, 26 Jun 2014 00:00:00 +0000A review of three books on children in war: Forgetting Children Born of War: "Setting the Human Rights Agenda in Bosnia and Beyond," by R. Charli Carpenter, "They Fight Like Soldiers, They Die Like Children: The Global Quest to Eradicate the Use of Child Soldiers," by Romeo Dallaire, and "Child Soldiers in the Age of Fractured States," edited by Scott Gates and Simon Reich.Political science, Social researchcb2875Political Science, International and Public AffairsReviewsThe Logic of Child Soldiering and Coercionhttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:175083
Berber, Bernd; Blattman, Christopher J.http://dx.doi.org/10.7916/D8ZW1J2KThu, 26 Jun 2014 00:00:00 +0000Why do armed groups recruit large numbers of children as fighters, often coercively? The international community has tried to curb these crimes by shaming and punishing leaders who commit them—in short, making the crimes costlier. Are these policies effective and sufficient? The answer lies in more attention to the strategic interaction between rebel leaders and recruits. We adapt theories of industrial organization to rebellious groups and show how, being less able fighters, children are attractive recruits if and only if they are easier to intimidate, indoctrinate, and misinform than adults. This ease of manipulation interacts with the costliness of war crimes to influence rebel leaders' incentives to coerce children into war. We use a case study and a novel survey of former child recruits in Uganda to illustrate this argument and provide hard evidence not only that children are more easily manipulated in war, but also how—something often asserted but never demonstrated. Our theory, as well as a new “cross-rebel” data set, also support the idea that costliness matters: foreign governments, international organizations, diasporas, and local populations can discourage child recruitment by withholding resources or punishing offenders (or, conversely, encourage these crimes by failing to act). But punishing war crimes has limitations, and can only take us so far. Children's reintegration opportunities must be at least as great as adults' (something that demobilization programs sometimes fail to do). Also, indoctrination and misinformation can be directly influenced. We observe grassroots innovations in Uganda that could be models for the prevention and curbing of child soldiering and counterinsurgency generally.Organizational behavior, African studiescb2875Political Science, International and Public AffairsArticlesClass-Size Caps, Sorting, and the Regression-Discontinuity Designhttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:172804
Urquiola, Miguel S.; Verhoogen, Eric A.http://dx.doi.org/10.7916/D88G8HSWFri, 11 Apr 2014 00:00:00 +0000This paper examines how schools’ choices of class size and households’ choices of schools affect regression-discontinuity-based estimates of the effect of class size on student outcomes. We build a model in which schools are subject to a class-size cap and an integer constraint on the number of classrooms, and higher-income households sort into higher-quality schools. The key prediction, borne out in data from Chile’s liberalized education market, is that schools at the class-size cap adjust prices (or enrollments) to avoid adding an additional classroom, which generates discontinuities in the relationship between enrollment and household characteristics, violating the assumptions underlying regression-discontinuity research designs.Economics, Educationmsu2101, ev2124Economics, International and Public AffairsArticlesFairness and Freight-Handlers: Local Labor-Market Conditions and Wage-Fairness Perceptions in a Trucking Firmhttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:172813
Verhoogen, Eric A.; Burks, Stephen V.; Carpenter, Jeffrey P.http://dx.doi.org/10.7916/D8W66HVVFri, 11 Apr 2014 00:00:00 +0000This paper draws on evidence from an internal attitude survey in the freight-handling terminals of a unionized trucking firm to investigate the effect of local labor market conditions on employee wage-fairness perceptions. The key element of our research design is that local managers have no discretion to vary wage rates in response to local labor market conditions; local economic shocks thus generate exogenous variation in the attractiveness of the wage paid by the firm relative to employees’ options in the outside labor market. We find robust associations between two indicators of local conditions – the rate of unemployment and the wages of similar workers in the outside market – and the wage-fairness perceptions of employees in the firm, which we argue reflects a causal relationship. As an extension, we relate the changes in local conditions and fairness perceptions to changes in employee performance, as measured by the rate of disciplinary dismissals. We find suggestive evidence that increased local unemployment leads to improved employee performance, and, conditional on a particular assumption about the mechanism through which local conditions affect performance, that increases in wage-fairness perceptions lead employees to supply more effort.Economics, Laborev2124Economics, International and Public AffairsWorking papersPlants and Imported Inputs: New Facts and an Interpretationhttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:172810
Kugler, Maurice; Verhoogen, Eric A.http://dx.doi.org/10.7916/D80Z71CPFri, 11 Apr 2014 00:00:00 +0000Beginning with Wilfred J. Ethier (1979, 1982), an important current of research has emphasized gains to trade from the greater availability of intermediate inputs, as opposed to the greater availability of consumption goods emphasized by Paul R. Krugman (1979) and others. It has been standard in this literature to model input varieties as symmetric, differentiated horizontally but not vertically. In contrast, anecdotal accounts, especially from developing countries, often stress the importance of gaining access to high-quality inputs on the import market. In theoretical discussions, the need to distinguish between the number of inputs and the quality of those inputs can be avoided by treating different qualities of a good as distinct varieties (see, e.g., Paul Romer 1994) or by redefining units of measurement. But in empirical work, one inherits the product categories and units in the data, and typically one must specify whether the availability-of-inputs mechanism is expected to operate through an increase in the number of input categories or through an increase in the quality of inputs within categories. Because of data constraints—in particular because of a lack of information on input and output prices in standard plant-level datasets—it has been difficult to investigate the role of input-quality differences, and recent empirical work, notably by Christian Broda, Joshua Greenfield, and David Weinstein (2006) and Pinelopi K. Goldberg et al. (2008), has tended to focus more on changes in the number of input categories than on quality differences within those categories. In this short paper, we draw on rich product level information from the Colombian manufacturing census to present a new set of facts about importing plants and input prices. The dataset is unique in that it contains detailed, representative, consistently measured information on the unit values of all inputs and outputs of plants. For the 1982–1988 period, the dataset also contains unit values separately for domestic and imported purchases of each input. As we discuss in more detail below, we interpret the new facts as suggesting that Colombian plants purchase higher-quality inputs on the import market than on the domestic market, within narrow product categories. Our empirical work has been guided in part by a theoretical framework from a related paper, Kugler and Verhoogen (2008). In that paper, we hypothesize a complementarity between input quality and plant productivity in generating output quality, and extend the model of Marc J. Melitz (2003) to accommodate it. The model predicts that, in equilibrium, more-productive plants are larger, use higher-quality inputs, produce higher-quality outputs, and are more likely to enter the export market than less-productive plants in the same industry. Using the Colombian plant census, we show that the cross-sectional correlations between a number of observable variables—output prices, input prices, plant size, and export status—as well as differences in those correlations across sectors,—are consistent with our theoretical framework and difficult to reconcile with alternative models that impose symmetry of either inputs or outputs. The distinctive aspect of the current paper is the focus on the distinction between imported and domestic inputs.Economics, Commerce-Businessev2124Economics, International and Public AffairsArticlesExports and Within-Plant Wage Distributions: Evidence from Mexicohttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:172807
Frías, Judith A.; Kaplan, David S.; Verhoogen, Eric A. http://dx.doi.org/10.7916/D84Q7S31Fri, 11 Apr 2014 00:00:00 +0000In many developing countries, increasing international integration has been accompanied by rising wage inequality, and traditional Heckscher-Ohlin models, which rely on between-sector reallocations to link trade and labor-market outcomes, are difficult to reconcile with this pattern (Goldberg and Pavcnik 2007). Recently, researchers have proposed a number of potential within-sector explanations based on the behavior of heterogeneous firms, involving technology choice, quality upgrading, search and bargaining, or fair wages, among other mechanisms. There is evidence at the plant level to support a within-sector link between trade and inequality. For instance, Verhoogen (2008) finds that initially larger, higher-productivity Mexican plants had higher export propensity and wages in cross-section in 1993 and that they were more likely to increase exports and wages in response to the late-1994 devaluation of the peso. The shock to exporting thus arguably increased dispersion in wages between plants within sectors. At the plant level, however, many of the proposed within-sector mechanisms carry similar observable implications. Distinguishing among the various mechanisms will require moving to a lower level of disaggregation, and exploiting information at the level of individual workers within plants. In this short article and the longer article to which it is a companion (Frías, Kaplan, and Verhoogen 2011), we use employer-employee data from Mexico and an identification strategy from Verhoogen (2008) to examine the effects of exporting on wage outcomes that are not available in standard plant-level datasets. In Frías, Kaplan, and Verhoogen (2011), we estimate the effect of exporting on wage premia, defined as wages above what individual workers would expect to earn elsewhere in the labor market. Wage premia are estimated as plant effects, controlling flexibly for individual heterogeneity (and allowing the return to worker ability to vary over time), implicitly assuming that the plant effect is the same for all employed workers. In this short article, by contrast, we do not attempt to control for worker heterogeneity, but instead focus on the effect of exporting on the shape of within-plant wage distributions. As we show in more detail below, we find that exporting has little effect on wages at the low end of the wage spectrum within plants, and that it raises within-plant wage dispersion, but not uniformly between all quantiles. The results are consistent with, but add important qualifications to, the finding of Verhoogen (2008) in plant-level data that exporting raised the ratio of white-collar to blue-collar average wages. This article is related to an active theory literature on trade, matching, and organizations which has proposed a variety of mechanisms linking trade and wage distributions within firms. Recent papers using employer-employee data to investigate the consequences of trade for labor-market outcomes (without focusing on the overall within-plant distributions) include Krishna, Poole, and Senses (2011); Hummels et al. (2011); and Davidson et al. (2011); see Frías, Kaplan, and Verhoogen (2011) for a fuller literature review.Economics, Labor, Economic theoryev2124Economics, International and Public AffairsArticlesMines: The Local Welfare Effects of Mineral Mining in Developing Countrieshttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:171770
von der Goltz, Jan; Barnwal, Prabhathttp://dx.doi.org/10.7916/D8348HFDThu, 13 Mar 2014 00:00:00 +0000Do residents of mining communities face health-wealth trade-offs? We conduct the first extensive investigation assessing this question using micro-data from communities near about 800 mineral mines in 44 developing countries. Mining communities enjoy a substantial medium term rise in asset wealth (0.3σ), but experience a nine percentage point increase in anemia among adult women, and a five percentage point increase in the prevalence of stunting in young children. Both of these health impacts have previously been linked to metal toxicity - and in particular, exposure to high levels of environmental lead. Benefits and costs are strongly concentrated in the immediate vicinity (5km) of the nearest mine. We find no systematic evidence of general ill health, and we observe health impacts only near mines of a type where lead pollution is to be expected. Identification is based on a mine-level and mother-level panel, and in the cross-section, on group effects. A novel instrumental variable serves as a cross-sectional robustness check. To make plausible that the observed health impacts are due to pollution, we develop difference-in-difference tests based on the known association of certain mine types with lead pollution, and based on the pathophysiology of lead toxicity. Our results represent the first comprehensive assessment of the local welfare impacts of mining in developing countries, and add to the evidence suggesting that communities near industrial centers in developing countries face information or cost constraints that limit their choice sets.Economics, Public healthpb2442Economics, International and Public AffairsWorking papersEnvisioning Performance Funding Impacts: The Espoused Theories of Action for State Higher Education Performance Funding in Three Stateshttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:170448
Dougherty, Kevin J.; Jones, Sosanya M.; Natow, Rebecca Spiro; Lahr, Hana Elizabeth; Pheatt, Lara Elaine; Reddy, Vikash T.http://dx.doi.org/10.7916/D83X84NGThu, 13 Feb 2014 00:00:00 +0000This study reviews the theories of action that advocates of performance funding have espoused for higher education in three states that are leaders in performance funding: Indiana, Ohio, and Tennessee. The authors found that espoused theories of action are incompletely articulated, with significant gaps in the specification of policy instruments, desired institutional changes, and possible obstacles and unintended impacts. Performance funding is conceived largely as stimulating changes in institutional behavior and student outcomes by providing financial inducements and securing institutional buy-in. Less attention is paid to other policy instruments, such as providing information on institutional performance to the colleges and building up the capacity of institutions to engage in organizational learning and change. The authors of this paper argue that insufficiently articulating the theories of action for performance funding makes it less likely that it will be successful and avoid undue harm.Community college education, Higher educationkd109, rsn2106, hel2112, lep2148, vtr2107Political Science, Institute on Education and the Economy, Education Policy and Social Analysis, Higher and Postsecondary Education, Community College Research Center, International and Public AffairsWorking papersThe Political Origins of Performance Funding 2.0 in Indiana, Ohio, and Tennessee: Theoretical Perspectives and Comparisons With Performance Funding 1.0http://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:170507
Dougherty, Kevin J.; Jones, Sosanya M.; Lahr, Hana Elizabeth; Natow, Rebecca Spiro; Pheatt, Lara Elaine; Reddy, Vikash T.http://dx.doi.org/10.7916/D8NS0RWMThu, 13 Feb 2014 00:00:00 +0000A new form of performance funding often called performance funding 2.0 (PF 2.0) represents a major shift in performance funding. Unlike earlier forms of performance funding that took the form of a bonus on top of the base state funding for higher education, PF 2.0 is embedded into the base funding itself. PF 2.0 programs are seen as promising means to significantly improve institutional performance due to the fact that they typically tie a larger portion of state funding to performance indicators than do PF 1.0 programs. Additionally, PF 2.0 programs aim to be more stable than PF 1.0 programs, as PF 2.0 performance indicators are written into the regular state funding formula itself and are not separate programs that can be easily dropped. Using three perspectives within policy theory—the Advocacy Coalition Framework, Policy Entrepreneurship theory, and policy diffusion theory—this paper examines the political forces supporting the enactment of PF 2.0 in three leading states and compares these forces with those involved in the enactment of PF 1.0 performance funding programs.Community college education, Education financekd109, smj2108, hel2112, rsn2106, lep2148, vtr2107Political Science, Institute on Education and the Economy, Education Policy and Social Analysis, Higher and Postsecondary Education, Community College Research Center, International and Public AffairsWorking papersForeign Investment, Corporate Ownership, and Development: Are Firms in Emerging Markets Catching Up to the World Standard?http://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:169701
Peter, Klara Sabirianova; Svejnar, Jan; Terrell, Katherinehttp://dx.doi.org/10.7916/D87W695DFri, 31 Jan 2014 00:00:00 +0000Economic development implies that the efficiency of firms in developing countries starts approaching that of firms from advanced economies. Various development policies have been pursued to achieve this convergence. We test for this convergence in two economies that represent alternative models of implementing market-oriented development policies: the Czech Republic and Russia. Using 1992–2000 panel data on virtually all medium and large industrial firms in each country and accounting for endogeneity of ownership, we find that foreign ownership markedly improved the efficiency of firms, whereas domestic private ownership did not; domestic firms are not catching up to the (world) efficiency standard given by foreign-owned firms. This is due in part to a slower growth of efficiency in domestic firms over time. However, foreigners' acquisitions of more efficient domestic firms are also contributing to the gap. Domestic firms closer to the frontier are not more likely to catch up than firms farther from the frontier, although foreign firms do exhibit this behavior. The distance of Russian firms to the efficiency frontier is much larger than that of Czech firms. Nevertheless, after nearly a decade of reforms, neither model of development has resulted in convergence of domestic firms to the world standard.Economics, Commerce-Business, Economic history, Economic theoryjs4085International and Public AffairsArticlesBusiness Environment, Exports, Ownership, and Firm Performancehttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:169704
Commander, Simon; Svejnar, Janhttp://dx.doi.org/10.7916/D8445JF0Fri, 31 Jan 2014 00:00:00 +0000We use two large samples of firms to assess the effects of business environment constraints, competition, export orientation, and ownership on firm performance. We deal with omitted variables, errors in variables, and endogeneity, and find that few business constraints affect performance. Replicating the analysis with Doing Business and Heritage Foundation indicators of the business environment yields similar results. In fact, country fixed effects, reflecting time-invariant differences in the business environment as well as other factors such as health care and education, matter more for firm performance than differences in the business environment across firms within countries.Economics, Commerce-Business, Economic theoryjs4085International and Public AffairsArticlesGlobalization and Innovation in Emerging Marketshttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:169707
Svejnar, Jan; Gorodnichenko, Yuriy; Terrell, Katherinehttp://dx.doi.org/10.7916/D80C4SRQFri, 31 Jan 2014 00:00:00 +0000Globalization brings opportunities and pressures for domestic firms in emerging markets to innovate and improve their competitive position. Using data from 27 emerging market economies, we estimate the effects of foreign competition and linkages with foreign firms on innovation by domestic firms. We provide robust evidence of a positive relationship between foreign competition and innovation, broadly defined. The supply chain of multinational enterprises and trade are also important channels. There is no evidence for an inverted U relationship between innovation and foreign competition. Moreover, the relationship between globalization and innovation does not differ across the manufacturing and service sectors.Economics, Economics, Commerce-Businessjs4085International and Public AffairsArticlesThe Effects of Privatization and Ownership in Transition Economieshttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:169710
Estrin, Saul; Hanousek, Jan; Kocenda, Evzen; Svejnar, Janhttp://dx.doi.org/10.7916/D8VM498TFri, 31 Jan 2014 00:00:00 +0000In this paper, we evaluate what we have learned to date about the effects of privatization from the experiences during the last fifteen to twenty years in the postcommunist (transition) economies and, where relevant, China. We distinguish separately the impact of privatization on efficiency, profitability, revenues, and other indicators and distinguish between studies on the basis of their econometric methodology in order to focus attention on more credible results. The effect of privatization is mostly positive in Central Europe, but quantitatively smaller than that to foreign owners and greater in the later than earlier transition period. In the Commonwealth of Independent States, privatization to foreign owners yields a positive or insignificant effect while privatization to domestic owners generates a negative or insignificant effect. The available papers on China find diverse results, with the effect of nonstate ownership on total factor productivity being mostly positive but sometimes insignificant or negative.Economics, Economic historyjs4085International and Public AffairsArticlesInvestment, Credit Rationing, and the Soft Budget Constraint: Evidence from Czech Panel Datahttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:169727
Svejnar, Jan; Lizal, Lubomirhttp://dx.doi.org/10.7916/D8BP00RWFri, 31 Jan 2014 00:00:00 +0000Strategic restructuring of firms through investment is key to a transition from plan to market. Using data on industrial firms in the Czech Republic during 1992-1998, we find that foreign-owned companies invest the most and cooperatives the least, that private firms do not invest more than state-owned ones, and that cooperatives and small firms are credit rationed. Given the large volume of nonperforming bank loans to firms and the high rate of investment of large state-owned and private firms, our findings also suggest that these firms operate under a soft budget constraint. Estimates of a dynamic model, together with the support for the neoclassical model, suggest that firms started to behave consistently with profit maximization.Economics, Commerce-Business, Economic historyjs4085International and Public AffairsArticlesEnterprise Breakups and Performance During the Transition from Plan to Markethttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:169736
Svejnar, Jan; Lizal, Lubomir; Singer, Miroslavhttp://dx.doi.org/10.7916/D8TQ5ZHXFri, 31 Jan 2014 00:00:00 +0000Using firm-level data, we estimate the effects of the major wave of 1991 breakups of Czechoslovak state-owned enterprises on the subsequent performance of the ‘master enterprises’ and spun-off divisions. We estimate the performance effects of spinoffs by comparing the performance of enterprises that remained intact throughout the 1990–1992 period to the performance of the master enterprises that experienced spinoffs and the newly spun-off subsidiaries. Our estimates suggest that the breakups had a significant immediate effect on the productive efficiency and on the profitability of industrial firms in 1991, and that the effect became much less significant in 1992. The effect is a negative function of the size of the spinoff, being positive for small to slightly above average-sized spinoffs and negative for very large ones. We cannot reject the hypothesis that the estimated effect was identical for the spun-off subsidiaries and the master enterprises that experienced the spinoffs. Our 1991 estimates suggest that the large firms created under the centrally planned system suffered from inefficiencies that were alleviated by the breakups. The 1992 estimates are consistent with increased competition and the appropriation of profits by managers.Economics, Commerce-Business, Economic historyjs4085International and Public AffairsArticlesEmployment Determination in Enterprises Under Communism and in Transition: Evidence from Central Europehttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:169715
Svejnar, Jan; Basu, Swati; Estrin, Saulhttp://dx.doi.org/10.7916/D8QZ27XZFri, 31 Jan 2014 00:00:00 +0000The authors present a comparative analysis of employment determination in four transition economies as they moved from central planning to a market economy in the early 1990s. They use firm-level panel data sets from the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, and Slovakia to estimate dynamic employment equations for the period immediately before and after the start of transition. For the most part, firms appear to have been quick to adjust employment to wage levels, and there is little evidence of labor hoarding. There were important cross-country variations in the determinants of employment during the reform process, however. Hungarian and Polish firms started the transition already substantially reformed, and became even more responsive to market signals as transition proceeded. In contrast, firms in the Czech and Slovak Republics started in the completely unresponsive mode characteristic of central planning, but rapidly caught up with their counterparts in Hungary and Poland.Economics, Economic historyjs4085International and Public AffairsArticlesReturns to Human Capital Under The Communist Wage Grid and During the Transition to a Market Economyhttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:169721
Svejnar, Jan; Munich, Daniel; Terrell, Katherinehttp://dx.doi.org/10.7916/D8M61H7DFri, 31 Jan 2014 00:00:00 +0000We estimate returns to human capital during communism and the transition using data on 2,284 men in the Czech Republic. We show: (a) extremely low and constant rates of return to education under the communist wage grid and dramatic increases in transition, which do not differ by firm ownership, (b) radical changes in returns to several fields of study and “sheepskin effects” in both regimes, (c) identical wage experience profile in both regimes, (d) similar 1996 returns to human capital obtained in communism and in transition, and (e) changes in the interindustry wage structure. A decomposition of the variance of wages finds individuals' unobservable effects from communism to persist into transition, but most of the variance is due to unobservable effects introduced in the transition.Economics, Economic historyjs4085International and Public AffairsArticlesTransition Economies: Performance and Challengeshttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:169730
Svejnar, Janhttp://dx.doi.org/10.7916/D86W9811Fri, 31 Jan 2014 00:00:00 +0000I present data and assess the first twelve years of the transition from plan to market. Transformations have taken place, but the income gap between the transition and advanced economies has widened. Transition countries further east have performed worse than those further west, but policies matter. All countries carried out quickly Type I reforms, such as macroeconomic stabilization, price liberalization, small-scale privatization, and breakup of state-owned enterprises. They differed in Type II reforms, such as large-scale privatization and development of banking and legal systems. Countries that developed a functioning legal framework and corporate governance have performed better than others.Economics, Economic historyjs4085International and Public AffairsArticlesMicroeconomic Issues in the Transition to a Market Economyhttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:169748
Svejnar, Janhttp://dx.doi.org/10.7916/D8FF3QBVFri, 31 Jan 2014 00:00:00 +0000The socialist system introduced microeconomic distortions that probably transcend those observed in the third world. The recent developments in Poland, Yugoslavia, and the Soviet Union also support the hypothesis that macro stabilization will be difficult to achieve in the transforming socialist economies in the absence of adequate micro adjustments. In this paper, I address what I consider to be the most important micro issues related to the transition from socialist to market economies. First I summarize the initial microeconomic conditions, covering labor, capital, and energy markets; the product markets, industrial organization, and trade; and the market for land and housing. Then, I describe the main changes that have taken place in the early stages of the transition. Finally, I discuss the micro policy agenda that needs to be addressed if the transition is to be successfulEconomicsjs4085International and Public AffairsArticlesUnemployment and the Social Safety Net during Transitions to a Market Economy: Evidence from the Czech and Slovak Republicshttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:169745
Ham, John C.; Svejnar, Jan; Terrell, Katherinehttp://dx.doi.org/10.7916/D8PZ56T1Fri, 31 Jan 2014 00:00:00 +0000The Central and East European (CEE) countries are completing the first decade of a dramatic transition from a centrally planned economic system to a market system. Although economic outcomes have been diverse, all CEE countries (except for the Czech Republic) have experienced rapidly rising and persistently high unemployment rates, which have been accompanied by long spells of unemployment. By contrast, in the Czech Republic the unemployment rate has remained low and unemployment spells have been short (Table 1). The unemployment crisis in the CEE countries has contributed to a political backlash as disenchanted voters often ousted the first reform governments after a few years. This experience underscores the importance of two questions. First, why has the unemployment problem in the Czech Republic been much less severe? Second, how can economies in transition strike a balance between (i) reducing government intervention and introducing market incentives, and (ii) providing an adequate social safety net that ensures public support for the transition? In addition to being of academic interest, answers to these questions are essential for policy makers in the CEE countries, in Western governments, and at international institutions such as the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund.Economics, Economic theoryjs4085International and Public AffairsArticlesThailand: Financial Crisis of 1997http://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:168871
Bakhshi, Alveena; Roy, Dipak; Averyanova, Nataliya; Goh, Richardhttp://dx.doi.org/10.7916/D85Q4T25Thu, 16 Jan 2014 00:00:00 +0000Thailand is widely considered to be where the Asian financial crises began. The examination reveals that Thailand's banking system was not equipped to handle the financial liberalization which began in 1989. And the appreciation of the US dollar against the Yen in 1996 led to the Currency and Banking Financial crises that followed.Financeab2091International and Public AffairsReportsAn Exploration of GATS for Developing Countries: Impact of Financial Services on Financial System Stabilityhttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:168868
Bakhshi, Alveena; Averyasha, Nataliya; Loomba, Sonal ; Nnadi, Sylvesterhttp://dx.doi.org/10.7916/D89G5JSGThu, 16 Jan 2014 00:00:00 +0000This premise of this research is that trade policies vis a vis. GATS current modes has not provided 'fair access' to developing countries and the costs far outweigh the benefits. The trade policies for financial services per GATS are an important factor for countries to progress and develop but such policies are often neglected due to the weak relationship between financial services trade liberalization and macroeconomic indicators in developing countries. The research statistically evaluates whether a relationship exists between a developing country's commitment to openness in trade in financial services and its financial stability indicators. The results prove a strong relationship exists with FDI but not with other modes. We further deliberate upon the need for sequencing financial services trade liberalization to avoid incidence of financial crises.Finance, Economicsab2091International and Public AffairsReviewsPolicy Recommendations for Capital Market Development in Chinahttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:168768
Bakhshi, Alveenahttp://dx.doi.org/10.7916/D8TD9V8ZWed, 15 Jan 2014 00:00:00 +0000This research covers the role of institutions, instruments and infrastructure in capital market development and contrasts it with that of China in an attempt to recommend policies that would strengthen China's capital markets.Financeab2091International and Public AffairsMaster's thesesAssessing “Dangerous Climate Change”: Required Reduction of Carbon Emissions to Protect Young People, Future Generations and Naturehttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:168357
Hansen, James E.; Kharecha, Pushker A.; Sato, Makiko H.; Masson-Delmotte, Valerie; Ackerman, Frank; Beerling, David J.; Hearty, Paul J.; Hoegh-Guldberg, Ove; Hsu, Shi-Ling ; Parmesan, Camille; Rockstrom, Johan; Rohling, Eelco J.; Sachs, Jeffrey D.; Smith, Pete; Steffen, Konrad; Van Susteren, Lise; von Schuckmann, Karina; Zachos, James C.http://dx.doi.org/10.7916/D80P0WZ7Thu, 19 Dec 2013 00:00:00 +0000We assess climate impacts of global warming using ongoing observations and paleoclimate data. We use Earth’s measured energy imbalance, paleoclimate data, and simple representations of the global carbon cycle and temperature to define emission reductions needed to stabilize climate and avoid potentially disastrous impacts on today’s young people, future generations, and nature. A cumulative industrial-era limit of ~500 GtC fossil fuel emissions and 100 GtC storage in the biosphere and soil would keep climate close to the Holocene range to which humanity and other species are adapted. Cumulative emissions of ~1000 GtC, sometimes associated with 2°C global warming, would spur “slow” feedbacks and eventual warming of 3–4°C with disastrous consequences. Rapid emissions reduction is required to restore Earth’s energy balance and avoid ocean heat uptake that would practically guarantee irreversible effects. Continuation of high fossil fuel emissions, given current knowledge of the consequences, would be an act of extraordinary witting intergenerational injustice. Responsible policymaking requires a rising price on carbon emissions that would preclude emissions from most remaining coal and unconventional fossil fuels and phase down emissions from conventional fossil fuels.Climate change, Environmental science, Paleoclimate sciencejeh1, pak2111, mhs119, js2201Economics, Center for Climate Systems Research, Health Policy and Management, Earth Institute, International and Public Affairs, Earth and Environmental SciencesArticlesEnvisioning Performance Funding Impacts: The Espoused Theories of Action for State Higher Education Performance Funding in Three Stateshttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:168026
Dougherty, Kevin J.; Jones, Sosanya M.; Lahr, Hana Elizabeth; Natow, Rebecca Spiro; Pheatt, Lara Elaine; Reddy, Vikash T.http://dx.doi.org/10.7916/D8SF2T44Fri, 06 Dec 2013 00:00:00 +0000This study reviews the theories of action espoused by state-level performance funding advocates and implementers in Indiana, Ohio, and Tennessee. The study found that these espoused theories of action are incompletely articulated, with significant gaps in the specification of policy instruments, desired institutional changes, and possible obstacles and unintended impacts that need to be countered. Performance funding is conceived largely as stimulating changes in institutional behavior and student outcomes by providing financial inducements and securing institutional buy-in. Less attention is paid to other policy instruments, such as providing information on institutional performance to the colleges and building up the capacity of institutions to engage in organizational learning and change. The states’ espoused theories of action for performance funding are, thus, narrower than those for state and federal K-12 accountability programs, which put much more emphasis on information provision and capacity building. Moreover, the espoused theories of action for performance funding in the three states miss important possible obstacles to and unintended impacts of performance funding. This report argues that insufficiently articulating the theories of action for performance funding makes it less likely that it will be successful and avoid undue harm.Higher education, Higher education administration, Education financekd109, smj2108, hel2112, rsn2106, lep2148, vtr2107Political Science, Institute on Education and the Economy, Education Policy and Social Analysis, Higher and Postsecondary Education, Community College Research Center, International and Public AffairsWorking papersContracts between Legal Personshttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:167871
Kornhauser, Lewis A.; MacLeod, W. Bentleyhttp://dx.doi.org/10.7916/D8KW5CZ8Wed, 27 Nov 2013 00:00:00 +0000Contract law and the economics of contract have, for the most part, developed independently of each other. In this essay, we brieﬂy review the notion of a contract from the perspective of lawyer, and then use this framework to organize the economics literature on contract. The review thus provides an overview of the literature for economists who are interested in exploring the economic implications of contract law. The title, Contracts between Legal Persons, limits the review to that part of contract law that is generic to any legal person. A legal person is any individual, ﬁrm or government agency with the right to enter into binding agreements. Our goal is to discuss the role of the law in enforcing these agreements under the hypothesis that the legal persons have well deﬁned goals and objectives.Economics, Lawwbm2103Economics, International and Public AffairsWorking papersInstitutions and Contract Enforcementhttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:167868
Falk, Armin; Huffman, David; MacLeod, W. Bentleyhttp://dx.doi.org/10.7916/D83T9F58Wed, 27 Nov 2013 00:00:00 +0000We provide evidence on how two important types of institutions -- dismissal barriers, and bonus pay -- affect contract enforcement behavior in a market with incomplete contracts and repeated interactions. Dismissal barriers are shown to have a strong negative impact on worker performance, and market efficiency, by interfering with firms' use of firing threat as an incentive device. Dismissal barriers also distort the dynamics of worker effort levels over time, cause firms to rely more on the spot market for labor, and create a distribution of relationship lengths in the market that is more extreme, with more very short and more very long relationships. The introduction of a bonus pay option dramatically changes the market outcome. Firms are observed to substitute bonus pay for threat of firing as an incentive device, almost entirely offsetting the negative incentive and efficiency effects of dismissal barriers. Nevertheless, contract enforcement behavior remains fundamentally changed, because the option to pay bonuses causes firms to rely less on long-term relationships. Our results show that market outcomes are the result of a complex interplay between contract enforcement policies and the institutions in which they are embedded.Economics, Labor, Managementwbm2103Economics, International and Public AffairsWorking papersDiagnosis and Unnecessary Procedure Use: Evidence from C-Sectionhttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:167846
Currie, Janet; MacLeod, W. Bentleyhttp://dx.doi.org/10.7916/D87M05W4Tue, 26 Nov 2013 00:00:00 +0000This paper develops and applies a model in which doctors have two dimensions of skill: diagnostic skill and skill performing procedures. Higher procedural skill increases the use of intensive procedures across the board, while better diagnostic skill results in fewer intensive procedures for the low risk, but more for the high risk. Deriving empirical analogues to our theoretical measures for the case of C- section, we show that improving diagnostic skill would reduce C-section rates by 15.8% among the lowest risk, and increase them by 4.7% among the high risk while improving outcomes among all women.Economics, Public health, Medicinewbm2103Economics, International and Public AffairsWorking papersPoverty by Social, Religious and Economic Groups in India and Its Largest States: 1993-94 to 2011-12http://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:166689
Panagariya, Arvind; More, Vishalhttp://hdl.handle.net/10022/AC:P:22034Tue, 29 Oct 2013 00:00:00 +0000Taking advantage of the household expenditure data from the 68th round of the National Sample Survey, conducted in 2011-12, we offer a comprehensive and up-to-date evaluation of the pattern of poverty alleviation across social, religious and economic groups in rural and urban India both nationally and at the level of the state. Poverty estimates at the Tendulkar line show that no mater what criterion we choose to slice the data (social, religious or economic groups), poverty has declined sharply between 1993-94 and 2011-12 with a significant acceleration during the faster-growth period of 2004-05 to 2011-12. Poverty rates among the Scheduled Castes have declined particularly sharply with the gap between these rates and those associated with the general population narrowing considerably. Poverty among the Scheduled Tribes has also declined with acceleration in the decline between 200405 and 2011-12 but the level remains high with significant scope and need for targeted act! ion. Surprisingly, in as many as seven out of the sixteen states for which we can credibly estimate poverty rates for both Hindus and Muslims, the poverty rate for the latter has dropped below the corresponding rate for the former. Nationally, the poverty rate among Muslims in rural areas is now within one percent of the rate for the Hindus. The gap remains nearly ten percentage points, however, in urban areas. The paper also suggests how the variation in poverty rates across groups could be used to develop criteria for the identification of the poor for purposes of targeting in social programs.Economicsap2231Institute for Social and Economic Research and Policy, International and Public AffairsWorking papersA Comprehensive Analysis of Poverty in Indiahttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:166686
Panagariya, Arvind; Mukim, Meghahttp://hdl.handle.net/10022/AC:P:22033Tue, 29 Oct 2013 00:00:00 +0000This paper offers a comprehensive analysis of poverty in India. It shows that no matter which of the two official poverty lines we use, poverty has declined steadily in all states and for all social and religious groups. Accelerated growth between the fiscal years 2004-05 and 2009-10 has also led to an accelerated decline in poverty rates. Moreover, the decline in poverty rates during these years has been sharper for the socially disadvantaged groups relative to upper caste groups so that we now observe a narrowing of the gap in the poverty rates between the two sets of social groups. The paper also provides a discussion of the recent controversies in India regarding the choice of poverty lines.Economicsap2231Institute for Social and Economic Research and Policy, International and Public AffairsWorking papersComparative Foreign Policy-The Challenge to Power Theorieshttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:164525
Long, Yingxianhttp://hdl.handle.net/10022/AC:P:21421Mon, 26 Aug 2013 00:00:00 +0000Although currently, classical realism theory based purely on power examination is under increasing criticisms. There is no denial that the power of a state is still a useful, if not the most fundamental, variable while assessing or predicting its behavior. The meaning of power has been extended since the further development of international studies. It contains traditional elements of power such as military, economic capability and also alleged soft power as a new emerging concept. The power talked about here is relative power of states rather than absolute power, which is the relative position in distribution of power. While at the same time, other plausible explanations of states’ behavior emerged separately or interdependently and they are all conducive for the creation of theories which have considerable explanatory power.Political science, International relationsyl3047International and Public AffairsReportsPolitical Evolution within CPC and the Depoliticizing of Chinese Intelligence Agencyhttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:164588
Long, Yingxianhttp://hdl.handle.net/10022/AC:P:21423Mon, 26 Aug 2013 00:00:00 +0000This article is an analysis on the depoliticizing of Chinese intelligence community. It gave an independent analysis on the potential reform of current Chinese intelligence community after the devolution of authority in 18th national party congress. In retrospect, the author illustrated the evolution of Chinese intelligence community related with the political evolution of Communist Party of China from 1920s and gave his perspectives on the future reform of it.Political scienceyl3047International and Public AffairsReportsThree Essays on Development and the Political Economy of South Asiahttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:164363
Blakeslee, David S.http://hdl.handle.net/10022/AC:P:21371Mon, 19 Aug 2013 00:00:00 +0000This dissertation consists of three essays on various aspects of development and the political economy of developing countries. The first two chapters share a focus on issues of political economy in South Asia, the first examining the influence of politics over public goods allocations, and the second the effects of ethno-religious politics on voter behavior, violence, and policy outcomes. The third chapter shares with the first two its geographic setting, being located in South Asia, but focuses on education, employing an RCT design to evaluate the efficacy of public-private partnerships in delivering high-quality primary education to remote communities. The first chapter examines the role of political parties in India's national government in shaping public goods allocations. Party preference is often regarded as important for shaping policy outcomes, but the empirical literature has yielded mixed results, with some research finding substantial party effects, and other research little to none. The discrepancies in estimated party effects are likely due to a combination of heterogeneous party characteristics and institutional context, as well as the the nature of political competition itself, with parties facing a trade-off in the promotion of their most preferred policies against the electoral incentive to cater to the median voter. To generate random random variation in party identity, I make use of the assassination of the Congress party leader, Rajiv Gandhi, in the midst of India's 1991 national elections, which had the effect of dramatically increasing the probability of Congress victory for a subset of constituencies. Using this variation, I find that representation by the ruling Congress party leads to a substantial increase in the provision of public goods favored by the poor, consistent with the party's expressed populist agenda. Among the salient changes are increases in the availability of drinking water and declines in infrastructure such as productive electrification and paved roads. I also estimate party effects using a regression discontinuity identification strategy, which generates variation in party identity for closely contested elections. Here I find little effect of Congress representation on public goods allocations. I argue that the reason for the differences between the results estimated with the two identification strategies is the importance of both the identity of the winning party, as well as the margin of victory. The second chapter examines the role of ethno-religious propaganda in generating support for political parties espousing ideologies of ethno-religious nationalism. A significant literature has shown the effects of political campaigns and media bias in influencing voter behavior. Ethnic identity often figures prominently in campaigns of voter mobilization, particularly in developing countries, where ethnic identities tend to be more salient, and state resources more subject to capture through power over the state. A large body of research has shown the ways in which, not only does ethnic diversity create an environment conducive to the ethnicization of political competition, but political competition itself contributes to the increased salience of ethnic identity.Prior to India's 1991 national elections, the leader of the Hindu-nationalist BJP political party toured northern India on a "pilgrimage" to the city of Ayodhya, holding numerous rallies along the way to promote the construction of a Hindu temple there. Causal identification of the campaign's effects comes through the incidental exposure of localities due to their lying along the road joining the cities which were the ultimate destinations of the campaign. The main result is that the campaign increased the BJP's vote share by 5-9 percentage points in visited constituencies, which translated to a 10-20 percentage points increase in the probability of victory. I also find that the campaign significantly increased the probability of riots, which were 9 percentage points more likely to occur in constituencies through which the campaign passed; and that the riots associated with the campaign increased the party's vote share by 3.5 percentage points. There is also evidence that the campaign increased the availability of local public goods, with the sub-district through which the campaign directly passed showing a 3-6 percentage points increase in a variety of public goods, such as electrification, drinking water, and primary schools. The third chapter, which is jointly authored with Leigh Linden, Felipe Barrera-Osorio, Dhushyanth Raju, and Matthew Hoover, examines the efficacy of public-private partnerships for delivering high-quality primary education to remote, and underserved, communities. Private entrepreneurs were enlisted to establish and operate primary schools throughout rural Sindh province in Pakistan, for which they were paid a per-child subsidy, with all local children between the ages of 5 and 9 allowed tuition-free enrollment. To address potential sources of endogeneity, the intervention was designed as a randomized control trial (RCT): 263 villages were identified as qualifying for the program, of which 200 were randomly assigned a school. In addition, half of the treatment villages were assigned a subsidy scheme whereby entrepreneurs were paid slightly more for girls than boys. The program proved remarkably effective, with enrollment increasing by 30-50 percentage points. Child test scores also improved considerably, with children in treatment villages scoring 0.67 standard deviations higher on administered exams. Interestingly, there was no differential effect on female enrollment for either subsidy scheme, which we attribute to the lack of a pre-existing gender gap in enrollment.Economicsdsb2108Economics, International and Public AffairsDissertationsNew Green Business Model for Sustainable Financehttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:162458
Fusaro, Peter C.http://hdl.handle.net/10022/AC:P:20780Mon, 17 Jun 2013 00:00:00 +0000Emerging markets for environmental financial investment and trading continue to attract significant global investment interest but little investment capital as yet. According to Cleantech Venture Network, $5.18 billion was deployed for clean-tech investment in global markets for 2007. For research and development in the same year, U.S. energy companies committed only $4 billion and the U.S. federal government spent $7.5 billion. It is now estimated that underinvestment in U.S. energy and water infrastructure is over $2 trillion. This underinvestment has been held up by regulatory uncertainty of the United States on federal climate change legislation as well as the lack of attention by politicians. That will now change with the next U.S. administration. As markets change, so do investment models. The new business model that has emerged for investment in alternative energy and clean technology is a hybrid business model of venture capital, hedge funds, and private equity. Investment is locked up for shorter periods of time, from one to four years, rather than with traditional venture capital time spans of up to 10 years. Coupled with the project orientation of the investment, there also is a dimension of credit trading for emissions, carbon, and renewable energy included in this investment strategy. The blurring of the lines among hedge funds, private equity funds, and venture capital is being exacerbated by significant private equity participation in environmental finance. This new hybrid financial green investment model will be discussed and analyzed in this paper.Finance, Energypf2264International and Public AffairsArticlesSocial Financinghttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:162462
Walker, Johnhttp://hdl.handle.net/10022/AC:P:20781Mon, 17 Jun 2013 00:00:00 +0000John Walker examines the financing opportunities and challenges facing social ventures.Financejw2461International and Public AffairsArticlesLabor Market Returns to School Quality in Chinahttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:161664
Guo, Donghttp://hdl.handle.net/10022/AC:P:20503Thu, 30 May 2013 00:00:00 +0000This dissertation carries out research dedicated to explore the impact of school quality on students' subsequent labor market earnings in China. Three distinctive datasets involving both urban and rural areas of China are used in the dissertation to investigate this issue: the Chinese General Social Survey (CGSS), China Health and Nutrition Survey (CHNS), and the Chinese Household and Income Project (CHIP). The paper's main empirical model follows Card and Krueger's two-step framework for modeling the impact of school quality on the labor market. In the first step, estimates of the rates of return to schooling are obtained for various provinces and cohorts in China, including 26 provinces (for which data is available) and four birth cohorts (namely 1946-1955, 1956-1965, 1966-1975, and 1976-1985). The second stage then uses these estimated rates of return to schooling as dependent variable, with two of the explanatory variables in the equation being variables that measure the level of school quality within each province back in time when the workers were of school-age, depending on the cohort to which they belong. The two measures of school quality utilized in the analysis are pupil/teacher ratio and expenditure per pupil. The results of the econometric analysis show great variation in rates of return to schooling among provinces and cohorts in China. Furthermore, the overall results show that, while the impact of pupil/teacher ratios on rates of return to schooling is statistically insignificant, the results are positive and statistically significant for expenditure per pupil. The sign and statistical significance of the school quality effects on rates of return to schooling are not different for men and women. However, the magnitude of the impact of increased expenditure per pupil on the rate of return to schooling for women is much higher than for men, even after correcting for selection bias. This dissertation also carries out a reduced-form analysis that examines the effects of school quality directly on labor market earnings, the results of which confirm that increases in school quality raise the average earnings of students.Economics, Educationdg2350Economics and Education, International and Public AffairsDissertationsEducation policy issues in Turkeyhttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:161443
Dincer, Mehmet Alperhttp://hdl.handle.net/10022/AC:P:20410Thu, 23 May 2013 00:00:00 +0000Since the mid-1990s, public education provision in Turkey has been in constant transformation, a result of modernization efforts connected to the political determination of governments to complete Turkey's accession to the European Union. During this period two nation-wide reforms stand out due to their dramatic impact on children, students, teachers and the education system as a whole. First, the Compulsory Education Law enacted in 1997 required that all the children enrolled in grade 4 or lower must stay in school until the completion of the eighth grade. Second, in 2002, the Ministry of National Education (MONE) abandoned recruiting teachers based on lottery and started to use teachers' test scores instead. Following new legislation, the Center of Measurement, Selection and Placement (ÖSYM) launched a central examination process which is known as the Public Servant Selection Examination (KPSS). This dissertation provides an econometric evaluation of the impact of these interventions on education outcomes in Turkey. The dissertation seeks to establish a causal link between the enactment of KPSS and student achievement. It presents evidence indicating that teacher recruitment via a meritocratic, test-based assessment instead of a lottery may have a positive impact on student achievement. The research also shows that the increase in the average student achievement displayed by Turkey in international assessments such as PISA (Programme of International Student Assessment) and TIMSS (Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study) may be partially explained by the inception of KPSS. The identification strategy for this assessment is based on the fact that the TIMMS data includes information on teachers and test scores for each student sampled in Turkey in both1999 and 2007, that is, before and after KPSS was enacted in 2002. This allows the estimation of a difference-in-differences model with student fixed effects. The findings highlight that students whose teachers were recruited after the enactment of KPSS perform 0.2 standard deviations higher than their counterparts whose teachers were recruited before the enactment of KPSS. This finding remains stable in several sensitivity and robustness checks.The dissertation then turns to analyzing an earlier intervention, the Compulsory Education Law of 1997. The research estimates the impact of the Compulsory Education Law on the years of schooling of women aged between 18 and 29. For this purpose, the dissertation uses the Turkey Demographic Health Survey 2003 and 2008. The identification strategy is based on the fact that, first, cohorts born after 1986 (children enrolled in grade 4 in the1996-1997 school year and later) were subject to the Compulsory Education Law and earlier cohorts were not, and, second, the intensity of the intervention varied between regions. Hence the investigation exploited the between-cohort and between-region variation in intensity of the intervention to estimate the causal impact of the Compulsory Education Law on years of schooling. The findings suggest that the Compulsory Education Law led to a 34 percentage point increase in the probability of completing eight years of schooling and an additional 1.5 years of schooling. Also, the econometric results indicate that the Compulsory Education Law affected high school completion rates, i.e. eleven years of schooling. The analysis of the impact of the Compulsory Education Law is extended to a two-stage least-squares (TSLS) estimation of the impact of completing eight years of schooling/additional years of schooling on teenage marriage and fertility. The between-cohort and between-region variation in intensity of the intervention are used to instrument completing eight years of schooling and additional years of schooling. However, in contrast with the existing research on this issue in Turkey, these TSLS estimations did not supply any evidence in favor of the presence of a causal link between completing eight years of schooling/additional years of schooling and teenage marriage and fertility.Education policy, Public policy, Economicsmad2197Economics and Education, International and Public AffairsDissertationsEssays on Firm Behavior in Developing Economieshttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:161461
Abeberese, Ama Baafrahttp://hdl.handle.net/10022/AC:P:20420Thu, 23 May 2013 00:00:00 +0000The performance of firms is central to growth in developing economies. A burgeoning literature within development economics seeks to understand the behavior of firms in developing countries and the constraints to their performance. This dissertation explores two types of constraints - infrastructure-related constraints and trade-related constraints - faced by manufacturing firms in developing countries. Despite the widely acknowledged importance of infrastructure for economic growth, there has been relatively little research on how infrastructure affects the decisions of firms. Electricity, in particular, is commonly cited by firms in developing countries as a major obstacle to their performance. In the first two chapters, I analyze the responses of firms to two types of electricity constraints, namely electricity prices and electricity shortages. Chapter 1 provides evidence on how electricity prices affect a firm's industry choice and productivity growth using data on Indian manufacturing firms. I construct an instrument for electricity price as the interaction between the price of coal paid by power utilities, which is arguably exogenous to firm characteristics, and the initial share of thermal generation in a state's total electricity generation capacity. I find that, in response to an exogenous increase in electricity price, firms reduce their electricity consumption and switch to industries with less electricity-intensive production processes. I also find that firm output, machine intensity and labor productivity decline with an increase in electricity price. In addition to these level effects, I show that firm output and productivity growth rates are negatively affected by high electricity prices. These results suggest that electricity constraints faced by firms may limit a country's growth by leading firms to operate in industries with fewer productivity-enhancing opportunities. Chapter 2 examines the impact of electricity shortages on firm investment. I identify this impact by studying an electricity rationing program that took place in Ghana in 1998, which placed significant constraints on the electricity available to firms. Using data on Ghanaian manufacturing firms, I find a significant decline in investment in plant and machinery during the electricity rationing period. The decline in investment is more pronounced for firms in electricity-intensive sectors. I explore alternative explanations for the reduction in investment during the electricity rationing period, including a contraction in firm credit access and economy-wide shocks unrelated to electricity constraints, and find no evidence in support of either explanation. The results, therefore, suggest that the reduction in investment during the electricity rationing period was due to the constraints on the availability of electricity. These findings highlight the potentially negative impact of the inadequate provision of electricity that frequently plagues developing countries. These electricity constraints can hinder growth in these countries by curbing investment by firms. In Chapter 3, I turn to the investigation of the effect of a trade-related constraint. Until recently, most of the literature on firms engaged in international trade had largely focused on exporting, with little work on the role of imports in the behavior and performance of firms. Using data on Indonesian manufacturing firms, Chapter 3 analyzes the effect of a reduction in tariffs on imported inputs on the exporting activity of firms. I argue that a tariff reduction program in Indonesia, which generated exogenous variation in the tariffs imposed on imports of goods used by firms, had a positive effect on the exported share of output of firms. I explore the mechanisms underlying this positive effect and find that an increase in the use of imported inputs, facilitated by the reduction in input tariffs, generated an increase in the exported share of output of firms. I also find that this positive effect is stronger for firms in industries with a greater scope for quality differentiation and high skill intensity. These results suggest that input tariff liberalization, by increasing access to higher-quality inputs from abroad, allows firms to produce higher-quality products for export markets.Economicsaba2114Economics, International and Public AffairsDissertationsEssays on Fertility and Sex Ratios in Indiahttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:160815
Sharma, Anukritihttp://hdl.handle.net/10022/AC:P:20150Wed, 01 May 2013 00:00:00 +0000In recent decades, several countries have experienced a rapid increase in their sex ratios at birth. This dissertation examines the causes and consequences of these imbalances in the Indian context. Lower desired fertility can translate into more male-biased sex ratios if son preference remains strong, especially with greater availability of prenatal sex-selection technology. Chapter 1 investigates whether financial incentives can simultaneously decrease fertility and the sex ratio at birth. I build a model where the effects of incentives on child-bearing and sex-selection are determined by the degree of son preference and the costs of children and sex-selection, relative to the size of incentives. I test the theoretical predictions in the context of Devirupak, a scheme adopted by the Indian state of Haryana. Devirupak incentivizes parents to have either one child or two daughters. Parents of one girl receive a larger benefit than one-boy or two-girl families, who receive the same amount. I construct a woman-year panel dataset from retrospective birth histories and exploit variation in the state and the timing of implementation and the composition of pre-existing children to estimate the causal effect of this scheme. Devirupak lowers the number of children by 0.9 percent, but mainly through a 1.9 percent decrease in the number of daughters. I find no evidence for an increase in the demand for daughters in response to a decrease in their relative price in the overall sample. However, the proportion of one-boy couples and the sex ratio of first and second births increased significantly. Thus, schemes that induce parents to choose either sons or daughters may lower fertility, but have unintended consequences for sex ratios, despite larger incentives for girls, if a minimum number of sons is desired. Chapter 2 examines the impact of tariff decline on fertility, the sex ratio at birth, and infant mortality in rural Indian districts. In relative terms, women more exposed to tariff cuts are more likely to give birth and these births are more likely to be female. These results are primarily driven by low-caste, low-wealth, and uneducated women. Moreover, infant mortality decreases for girls (but not boys) born to these low-status mothers. On the other hand, fertility decreases and female infant mortality increases for high-status women. They also exhibit a weak increase in the sex ratio at birth. Differential effect of the tariff reform on the relative economic opportunities of women across socioeconomic groups is the most likely mechanism for these results. Chapter 3 analyzes the effects of sex ratio imbalances on pre-marital investments and marital outcomes in India. Changes in the availability of pre-natal sex-selection technology differentially altered the mating pool of individuals born in different states, cohorts, and endogamous social groups. I show that increases in the male to female sex ratio at birth are associated with a decrease in educational attainment, age at marriage, and labor force participation rates, and an increase in spouse's age for women relative to men. These findings are consistent with an improvement in the position of women in the marriage market due to their relative scarcity.Economics, Gender studies, Demographyas3232Economics, International and Public AffairsDissertationsSocial Policy and Family Well-Being: Essays in Applied Microeconomicshttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:160340
Rossin-Slater, Mayahttp://hdl.handle.net/10022/AC:P:20039Tue, 30 Apr 2013 00:00:00 +0000In my dissertation, I study how individuals respond to changes in their options and constraints as a result of government policies and their local environments. I focus on issues in maternal and child well-being, as well as family structure and behavior, and draw implications for addressing the needs of disadvantaged populations in the United States. I use quasi-experimental empirical strategies with large and varied data sets to provide credible causal estimates. I believe that the results from my research can shed some light on the causes and consequences of disadvantage in the United States, contribute to cost-benefit analyses of some of the largest social welfare programs, and help inform decisions about public spending. The focus on maternal and early childhood well-being is motivated by increasing support for the notion that fetal and infant health are predictive of individuals' later-life outcomes (Almond and Currie, 2011a,b). This evidence highlights the potential value in programs and policies aimed at pregnant women and new mothers. Indeed, successful programs that improve the welfare of disadvantaged women during pregnancy and post-partum may play an important role in ameliorating inequalities at birth, and thereby potentially mitigating the intergenerational transmission of low socio-economic status. In the first essay, titled "The Effects of Maternity Leave on Children's Birth and Infant Health Outcomes in the United States" (published in the Journal of Health Economics, March 2011), I provide the first quasi-experimental analysis of the effects of the unpaid maternity leave provisions of the 1993 Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) on children's birth and infant health outcomes in the United States. My identification strategy uses variation in pre-FMLA maternity leave policies across states and variation in which firms are covered by FMLA provisions. Using Vital Statistics data and difference-in-difference-in-difference methodology, I find that maternity leave led to small increases in birth weight, decreases in the likelihood of a premature birth, and substantial decreases in infant mortality for children of college-educated and married mothers. The fact that I only find positive impacts on the health of children of college-educated and married women, while children of less-advantaged women experience no health benefits, suggests that unpaid parental leave policies may exacerbate disparities in child health as they only benefit the parents who can afford to use them. In the second essay, "Engaging Absent Fathers: Lessons from Paternity Establishment Programs," I examine behavior among parents who have children out-of-wedlock. Single-mother households are disproportionately disadvantaged, and children raised in two-parent households fare better along numerous measures of well-being. These facts motivate the implementation of policies that encourage father involvement among unmarried parents. I conduct the first comprehensive causal analysis of one of the largest U.S. policies that aims to engage unmarried fathers with their families, In-Hospital Voluntary Paternity Establishment (IHVPE), and place my findings in the context of a conceptual framework rooted in family economics theory (Edlund, 2011; Browning, Chiappori, and Weiss, forthcoming). The program significantly reduces the costs of formal paternity estabishment, which is the only available legal contract that assigns partial parental rights and obligations to unmarried fathers. Using data from a multitude of sources and variation in the timing of IHVPE initiation across states, I show that IHVPE achieves its stated goal of substantially increasing paternity establishment rates. However, I show that IHVPE also affects another margin of parental behavior. I find a \emph{negative} effect on parental marriage -- specifically, for each additional paternity established as a result of IHVPE, there are 0.13 fewer parental marriages occurring post-childbirth. Accounting for the decline in parental marriage, I find that the net effects on some measures of father involvement are negative, while overall child well-being is largely unaffected. Why might paternity establishment serve as a substitute to marriage for some parents? To explain this finding, I offer a simple conceptual framework, in which parents trade-off their utility from access to children with their match quality. Paternity establishment offers an "intermediate" parental relationship option between the "extremes" of no formal relationship and marriage. When the cost of establishing paternity is lowered, parents who would have previously maintained no formal relationship and parents who would have previously been married are more likely to choose the intermediate contract. If fathers are more involved with their children when they have greater parental rights (Weiss and Willis, 1985; Edlund, 2011), then the net effect on father involvement is ambiguous, and can be negative if the increase in involvement among switchers out of no relationship is lower than the decrease in involvement among switchers out of marriage. My results suggest that the trade-off between access to children and match quality is empirically relevant for parents who have children out-of-wedlock, and policies based on the notion that more father involvement is essential to child and family well-being must account for the parents' agency in choosing their partners. A paternity establishment program that intends to engage absent fathers and increase father involvement can actually have the opposite effects by discouraging some parents from marriage and reducing the support provided by otherwise married fathers. Finally, in the third essay, titled "WIC in Your Neighborhood: New Evidence on the Impacts of Geographic Access to Clinics" (accepted at the Journal of Public Economics), I examine how geographic proximity to Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) clinics affects food benefit take-up, pregnancy behaviors, and birth outcomes. WIC is the major U.S. program with a goal of enhancing the health and nutrition of low-income pregnant women and children. Rigorous evaluation of the program is necessary both for policy-making purposes and for providing new estimates of the determinants of fetal and infant health. Although there are several studies that examine the relationship between WIC and birth outcomes (e.g. Bitler and Currie, 2005; Joyce et al., 2005; Joyce et al., 2008; Figlio et al., 2009; Hoynes et al., 2011), much less attention has been paid to the determinants of WIC benefit take-up. Moreover, consensus on the effectiveness of WIC has not been reached: the existing literature suffers from problems due to omitted variables bias, lack of data on important variables such as benefit take-up and breastfeeding, and other econometric and measurement issues. I employ a novel empirical approach on data from birth and administrative records over 2005-2009 that uses within-zip-code variation in WIC clinic presence together with maternal fixed effects, and accounts for the potential endogeneity of mobility, gestational-age bias, and measurement error in gestation. I find that access to WIC increases food benefit take-up, pregnancy weight gain, birth weight, and the probability of breastfeeding initiation at the time of hospital discharge. The estimated effects are strongest for mothers with a high school education or less, who are most likely eligible for WIC services.Economicsmr2856Economics, International and Public AffairsDissertationsHow Good a Player Was Jackie Robinson?http://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:159283
Mitchell, Lincoln A.http://hdl.handle.net/10022/AC:P:19774Thu, 18 Apr 2013 00:00:00 +0000Jackie Robinson played in his last game well over 50 years ago, and died over 40 years ago. Thus many baseball fans never saw Robinson play, and have only read about him or seen old footage of his playing days. Over time, not surprisingly, the story of Jackie Robinson, has surpassed the memory of Jackie Robinson as a player. Robinson was, however, a great player, and an unusual one. Looking more closely at what Jackie Robinson did on the field helps fill in the picture of who he was.Recreation and tourismlam13Harriman Institute, International and Public AffairsBlog postsPlay Ball-Baseball Season Is Here Again!http://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:159289
Mitchell, Lincoln A.http://hdl.handle.net/10022/AC:P:19776Thu, 18 Apr 2013 00:00:00 +0000The beginning of the baseball season is only a few days away. This is good news to all baseball fans who have made it through another off-season, and another winter. This season, like all others, is full of possibility excitement and questions. Will this be the year the Yankees finally fall apart? How can Mike Trout top his extraordinary rookie season? Are the Nationals going to be as good as they look? Somewhere in the ephemera is Miguel Cabrera still waiting for that slider? All, or most, of these questions, and many others will be answered over the next seven months or so.Recreation and tourismlam13Harriman Institute, International and Public AffairsBlog postsMike Huckabee's Reductio ad Hitlerumhttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:159295
Mitchell, Lincoln A.http://hdl.handle.net/10022/AC:P:19778Thu, 18 Apr 2013 00:00:00 +0000Former Arkansas governor, and formerly relevant national political figure, Mike Huckabee is guilty of the latest right wing reductio ad Hitlerum fallacy. The Tea Party and right wing penchant for comparing President Obama to Hitler and Stalin is evidence not of any totalitarian tendencies on the part of Obama. Instead it is evidence that right wing contempt for science is now rivaled by contempt for learning anything about history. Stalin and Hitler are among the most brutal murderers and dictators of the 20th, or any other, century. Most of the world knows this. To the right wing of the Republican Party, apparently, Stalinism is a system of governance where the marginal tax rate exceeds 35 percent, while the Nazi regime, according to Huckabee's newest insight, was one characterized by gun control.Political sciencelam13Harriman Institute, International and Public AffairsBlog postsBackground Checks Should Not Be the End of the Gun Discussionhttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:159280
Mitchell, Lincoln A.http://hdl.handle.net/10022/AC:P:19773Thu, 18 Apr 2013 00:00:00 +0000At the center of the gun debate in Washington is the issue of background checks. Supporters of regulating gun ownership would like prospective gun owners to pass a background check, while opponents believe this would be an invasion of privacy and lead to a national registry of guns. It is worth noting, that a few months after the horrific killings at Sandy Hook, we are now debating whether somebody buying a gun should be able to avoid the scrutiny that many volunteer youth sports coaches now encounter. This is a long way from passing meaningful laws to keep our children, parents and each other safe from wanton shootings.Political science, Public policylam13Harriman Institute, International and Public AffairsBlog postsThe Posey and Cain Contractshttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:159292
Mitchell, Lincoln A.http://hdl.handle.net/10022/AC:P:19777Thu, 18 Apr 2013 00:00:00 +0000This is the second year in a row the San Francisco Giants have ended spring training by signing a major star to an enormous contract extension. Their star catcher, and reigning NL MVP, Buster Posey, is now signed through 2021, with an option for 2022, at a total cost of about $167 million. Last year, the Giants signed star pitcher Matt Cain to a similar long term contract which will keep Cain on the Giants through 2018, if the team exercises its option for that year, at a total cost of around $136 million.Recreation and tourismlam13Harriman Institute, International and Public AffairsBlog postsAshley Judd Could Be a Problem for Mitch McConnellhttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:159286
Mitchell, Lincoln A.http://hdl.handle.net/10022/AC:P:19775Thu, 18 Apr 2013 00:00:00 +0000Ashley Judd's all but declared Senate campaign has the potential to have an impact far beyond Kentucky politics. Her candidacy will not be uncontroversial. As a movie star with a national profile and as a supporter of progressive causes, she may not look like the ideal candidate to unseat a Republican incumbent -- albeit an increasingly unpopular one -- in a solidly red state like Kentucky. This, however, is what makes Judd's Senate campaign intriguing and indeed important.Political sciencelam13Harriman Institute, International and Public AffairsBlog postsThe Supreme Court and Marriage Equalityhttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:159298
Mitchell, Lincoln A.http://hdl.handle.net/10022/AC:P:19779Thu, 18 Apr 2013 00:00:00 +0000This was a hugely important week for LGBT Americans as well as advocates for equality for all citizens because the Supreme Court heard cases regarding California's Proposition 8 as well as the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA). It was also, however, a very important week for the Supreme Court. The Court may or may not decide to overturn both of these discriminatory pieces of legislation, but it is clear that the arc of history is again bending towards equality. LGBT Americans are winning; and those that would continue to seek to deny equality to all Americans are losing. This puts the Court in the position of either helping to bring about an inevitable, and positive, change, or of being conspicuous in support of bigoted laws and prejudices from another era.Political science, Lawlam13Harriman Institute, International and Public AffairsBlog postsThe Yankees and Mets Are Facing Challenges Off the Field Toohttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:159301
Mitchell, Lincoln A.http://hdl.handle.net/10022/AC:P:19780Thu, 18 Apr 2013 00:00:00 +0000Despite the good first weak enjoyed by the Mets, and the recent hot streak by the Yankees, this season may be a rough one for big league baseball in New York. It is possible that, for the first time since 1992, both the Yankees and Mets will finish below .500. Additionally, the Yankees are an old team without any top-level prospects ready to step into major roles in either 2013 or 2014. The Mets are younger, but like many recent Mets teams, seem to be without a plan or vision for improving for the next several years. This tough situation is compounded by the resurgence of California baseball and of Southern California as a big market. To put this in perspective, if they played in California the Yankees would probably be the third best AL team in the state, while the Mets might make it that high among NL teams, but could also fall behind the Padres and be the fourth best team in that state.Recreation and tourismlam13Harriman Institute, International and Public AffairsBlog postsThe Mohorovicic discontinuity in ocean basins: Some observations from seismic datahttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:158935
Mutter, John Colin; Carton, Helene D.http://hdl.handle.net/10022/AC:P:19696Mon, 08 Apr 2013 00:00:00 +0000Since the late 1970s studies of the oceanic crust using airgun sources and towed hydrophone arrays have been conducted in a wide range of ocean basin settings including mid-ocean ridges and old oceanic crust. The very earliest studies were performed at the fast-spreading East Pacific Rise (EPR) and revealed a very distinct almost continuous vertical incidence reflection event at a depth corresponding to the crust–mantle transition as inferred from seismic refraction studies. This suggested that the transition was quite sharp in comparison to the source wavelength. That Moho was observed very close to or even exactly beneath the ridge crest implied that it was formed at essentially zero age. Since then, many experiments using progressively improving airgun arrays and streamer systems have expanded these observations. Here we review the literature presenting studies of “normal” oceanic crust produced at mid-ocean ridges with the objective of assessing the age of formation of Moho and the nature of variability of Moho signature in multi-channel seismic data. Moho is observed as a consistent feature for all spreading rates but appears quite variable, being very distinct in some areas, complex in form in others and absent in many regions (as much as 40%). Although fast-spread crust is associated with the strongest, simplest and most laterally continuous Moho images we see significant variability at almost all spreading rates and ages. Where Moho is absent from vertical incidence data this cannot be fully explained by the effect of scattering or attenuation in the crustal section above. Moho can be observed at zero age in only a small number of areas at or near Overlapping Spreading Centers on the EPR. After three decades of marine seismic studies many fundamental questions remain concerning the nature of the Moho that will require targeted experiments to solve.Marine geology, Physical geographyjcm7, hc2383Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, International and Public Affairs, Earth and Environmental SciencesArticlesOn the Economy, Think Long-Termhttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:158384
Sachs, Jeffrey D.http://hdl.handle.net/10022/AC:P:19568Mon, 01 Apr 2013 00:00:00 +0000The 2009 economic stimulus package has come and gone. So, too, have the temporary payroll tax cuts of 2011-12. Most of the Bush-era tax cuts, in addition, have been made permanent. Yet the lasting effects of these policies have been meager.Economics, Economics, Labor, Public policyjs2201Economics, Health Policy and Management, Earth Institute, International and Public AffairsReportsConservatives Can Learn From Rob Portmanhttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:158092
Mitchell, Lincoln A.http://hdl.handle.net/10022/AC:P:19432Mon, 25 Mar 2013 00:00:00 +0000Senator Rob Portman's (R-OH) decision to support marriage equality highlights the absurdity of his previous position. Portman, who was a social conservative but whose positions have evolved since learning a few years ago that his son is gay, clearly believes that his love for his son is more important than holding on to bigoted views. This is obviously a wise and laudable decision, but it also raises questions about his previously bigoted position.Political sciencelam13Harriman Institute, International and Public AffairsBlog postsThe Next Yankee World Series Teamhttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:158098
Mitchell, Lincoln A.http://hdl.handle.net/10022/AC:P:19434Mon, 25 Mar 2013 00:00:00 +0000Mariano Rivera, who has announced that 2013 will be his last season, is one of the best and, from my subjective view, coolest ballplayers ever. This year, at age 43, he is seeking to comeback from an injury that cost him almost all of the 2012 season. If he saves 50 games, has an ERA under 2.00 and a strikeout to walk ratio of better than 4:1, most Yankee fans would be extremely happy to see their favorite pitcher come all the way back. They would also not be terribly surprised, because Rivera is unlike any other pitcher in the game.Recreation and tourismlam13Harriman Institute, International and Public AffairsBlog postsPaul Ryan's Road Back to Relevancehttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:158095
Mitchell, Lincoln A.http://hdl.handle.net/10022/AC:P:19433Mon, 25 Mar 2013 00:00:00 +0000It must be springtime. The weather is finally getting warmer, baseball season is almost here and Paul Ryan is presenting a budget proposal which, despite his assurances that it is innovative and reflects new thinking, is little more than a right-wing economic program seeking to balance the budget by cutting expenditures for poor people while doing little or nothing to ask wealthier Americans to do their share.Political sciencelam13Harriman Institute, International and Public AffairsBlog postsFiscal Ultimatum Fatiguehttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:158104
Mitchell, Lincoln A.http://hdl.handle.net/10022/AC:P:19436Mon, 25 Mar 2013 00:00:00 +0000The possibility of a range of spending cuts beginning automatically on March 1st due to the sequester remains very real with only a few days remaining until the deadline. The sequester will cut spending, but also likely impact economic recovery and growth. While some may laud the sequester for finally reducing spending, it is also a clumsy tool for making policy relying upon broad, but moderate, cuts rather than more well thought out cuts to specific programs. Despite this, few ordinary Americans are too concerned about the potential sequester.Political sciencelam13Harriman Institute, International and Public AffairsBlog postsFighting Over Blame in the Republican Partyhttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:158107
Mitchell, Lincoln A.http://hdl.handle.net/10022/AC:P:19437Mon, 25 Mar 2013 00:00:00 +0000In the last few weeks, the buzz about the internal battles inside the Republican Party has been growing. The Roveites hate the Libertarians, the Libertarians hate the mainstream Republicans, the mainstream Republicans hate the Tea Partiers and everybody hates President Obama. It feels more like a Tom Lehrer song than the plight of a serious political party facing a serious struggle.Political sciencelam13Harriman Institute, International and Public AffairsBlog postsBaseball's Dumbest Clichehttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:158110
Mitchell, Lincoln A.http://hdl.handle.net/10022/AC:P:19438Mon, 25 Mar 2013 00:00:00 +0000Baseball is a game of, among other things, cliches. It is impossible to watch a ballgame on television, listen to one on the radio or even talk baseball with most fans for long before a player is described as "running pretty well for a catcher," or reporting to spring training in "the best shape of his career." Every championship team is described as having "good chemistry," and middle infielders who stick around for a long time for no apparent reason are still occasionally described as "scrappy."Recreation and tourismlam13Harriman Institute, International and Public AffairsBlog postsA Well Deserved Championship for the Dominican Republichttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:158089
Mitchell, Lincoln A.http://hdl.handle.net/10022/AC:P:19431Mon, 25 Mar 2013 00:00:00 +0000Many times when people from Europe or other non-baseball playing countries have commented how strange it is that Americans love baseball while "the rest of the world plays soccer," I have tried to explain that many countries play baseball. After listing off the countries where baseball is popular, I usually conclude by telling people that the country with the best baseball in the world is not the U.S., but the Dominican Republic.Recreation and tourismlam13Harriman Institute, International and Public AffairsBlog postsIn Defense of the World Baseball Classichttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:158101
Mitchell, Lincoln A.http://hdl.handle.net/10022/AC:P:19435Mon, 25 Mar 2013 00:00:00 +0000Bud Selig has been a very controversial baseball commissioner. He more or less encouraged steroid use for years, allowing it to become a major problem, before seeking, ineffectively, to address the problem for the last several years. He created the new system of three divisions and the wild card, now wild cards, which have been a mixed bag for baseball. He also presided over a gratuitous offensive boom for about a decade beginning around 1994 which lead to a bloated and less enjoyable style of play.Recreation and tourismlam13Harriman Institute, International and Public AffairsBlog postsUnderstanding "Us" versus "Them"http://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:157379
Sachs, Jeffrey D.http://hdl.handle.net/10022/AC:P:19237Mon, 04 Mar 2013 00:00:00 +0000I'm afraid I'm going to talk more today about the obstacles to love than I am about love itself. I'm going to talk about the social circumstances in which hate arises, and particularly about the issues we're facing in our country and in the world right now, on a morning when dozens more people have been killed in Iraq, and when American warplanes are routinely bombing civilian neighborhoods in a manner that would have seemed utterly impossible—shocking and barbaric—to many of us, I think, just a short time ago. The newspapers are dreadful in what they don't tell us every day. The New York Times reported yesterday, "American armored vehicles roared through the villages surrounding Falluja, the western town at the heart of the Sunni insurgency in Iraq, on Friday, as warplanes pounded rebel positions and ground forces ratcheted up their preparations for what appeared to be an imminent assault on the city."1 This is sheer propaganda, because already in the first line is the idea that our warplanes are pounding "rebel positions," not bombing civilian neighborhoods. We learned last week from The Lancet magazine, which published the most serious epidemiological study that has been undertaken regarding the casualties in Iraq since the war began, that there are by best estimates—though admittedly this is with high uncertainty—100,000 deaths in excess of what would have been expected based on prewar circumstances, and that the vast majority of those deaths have come through violent attacks by U.S. forces, principally bombing by our aircraft.2 and so we enact Guernica every day, and our newspapers report it as "warplanes pounding rebel positions." The Associated Press this morning said the same thing, that Marines fired a barrage of artillery at "rebel positions" inside Falluja; U.S. jets have been pounding the "rebel bastion" for days—not the city.Philosophy, Psychologyjs2201Economics, Center for the Study of Science and Religion, Health Policy and Management, Earth Institute, International and Public AffairsPresentationsMy Father and Stan the Manhttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:156704
Mitchell, Lincoln A.http://hdl.handle.net/10022/AC:P:19082Thu, 14 Feb 2013 00:00:00 +0000A few hours after the Cardinals won the 2011 World Series, I got an email from my father saying "Tonight, this old Cardinals fan is very happy." My father is far from a big sports fan and grew up in New Jersey, making it unclear why he was a Cardinals fan. It was possible that he was simply rooting against the Rangers because of the presence of George W. Bush in the owner's box periodically during the World Series, but it was unlikely that my father was even paying attention that closely. Over the years, I have met other men my father's age who were also lifelong Cardinals fans despite growing up in the east, where they were a lot closer to Boston, New York, Philadelphia or Washington.Recreation and tourismlam13Harriman Institute, International and Public AffairsBlog postsThe Giants Can Develop Hitters Toohttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:156710
Mitchell, Lincoln A.http://hdl.handle.net/10022/AC:P:19084Thu, 14 Feb 2013 00:00:00 +0000In 2012, only eight players 25 years old or younger came to bat 400 or more times and posted an OPS+ of 120 or better. These players may not be the best eight young hitters in the big leagues, but according to this reasonably good heuristic, they should be considered among the eight best. The names of four of these players should come as no surprise. Buster Posey, Mike Trout, Andrew McClutchen and Giancarlo Stanton, had OPS+ better than 150 last year and clearly are among the very best young hitters in the game.Recreation and tourismlam13Harriman Institute, International and Public AffairsBlog postsWhat Are the Republicans Talking About Now?http://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:156689
Mitchell, Lincoln A.http://hdl.handle.net/10022/AC:P:19077Thu, 14 Feb 2013 00:00:00 +0000In the aftermath of the election, the notion that the Republican Party was facing what might delicately be called an uphill demographic battle was frequently raised. This was made evident by the age and ethnicity demographics in the U.S., and by President Obama's decisive victory in his bid for reelection. Since the election, the Republican Party's demographic problem has manifested itself in another significant way. Because of their narrow demographic and ideological base, the Republican Party and its leadership, inside and outside of congress, has proven itself to be increasingly out of touch with the citizenry it seeks to govern.Political sciencelam13Harriman Institute, International and Public AffairsBlog postsFive Questions for the 2013 Baseball Seasonhttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:156701
Mitchell, Lincoln A.http://hdl.handle.net/10022/AC:P:19081Thu, 14 Feb 2013 00:00:00 +0000Baseball is, among other things, a game of questions. Before each season the battery of questions include which players will see their skills erode suddenly due to age, which second-year players will build on successful rookie years, which rookies will make an impact and, of course, which team will win the World Series. Each team also faces many questions including: will the pitching hold up, will the top prospect make it in the big leagues, will an aging veteran come back after an injury or off year. As each new year begins there are also significant questions facing baseball that address deeper issues facing the game. This year five of these question are:Recreation and tourismlam13Harriman Institute, International and Public AffairsBlog postsSteroids Aren't the Only Problem Facing the Hall of Famehttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:156707
Mitchell, Lincoln A.http://hdl.handle.net/10022/AC:P:19083Thu, 14 Feb 2013 00:00:00 +0000In 1962, a left-handed hitting 22-year-old Pittsburgh Pirate named Willie Stargell, made his big league debut. That year, in only 34 plate appearances he hit a very respectable .290/.353./452. Stargell would go on to play 21 seasons for the Pirates becoming one of the best and most beloved players in that franchise's history before being elected to the Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility.Recreation and tourismlam13Harriman Institute, International and Public AffairsBlog postsWhy Hillary Clinton Might Want to Runhttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:156692
Mitchell, Lincoln A.http://hdl.handle.net/10022/AC:P:19078Thu, 14 Feb 2013 00:00:00 +0000Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has not yet determined whether not she will run for president in 2016. Clinton has clearly wanted to be president for years, is well qualified for the position and is currently one of the most popular politicians in the country. However, she also may be ready for a change after spending the last 20 years in the public spotlight. Additionally, questions about her health could come up during the campaign. While it cannot yet be known if Clinton will seek her party's nomination in 2016, it is reasonably clear that if she runs, she will be the strong favorite for the Democratic nomination and have a good chance of beating any Republican opponent in the general election.Political sciencelam13Harriman Institute, International and Public AffairsBlog postsDid the 2016 Republican Primary Season Begin Last Night?http://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:156679
Mitchell, Lincoln A.http://hdl.handle.net/10022/AC:P:19074Thu, 14 Feb 2013 00:00:00 +0000The State of the Union is one of those moments in political life where the backstory and positioning are much more significant than the event itself. President Obama's speech last night was a good speech in that he presented a solid vision of his priorities and goals for the next months and years. It was not, however, groundbreaking or significant. Many of the ideas in the speech had either been previously raised in the president's recent second inaugural address, or were restatements of Democratic Party principles and goals of the last several decades.Political sciencelam13Harriman Institute, International and Public AffairsBlog postsAvoiding the Fiscal Cliff, But Not the Steady Declinehttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:156676
Mitchell, Lincoln A.http://hdl.handle.net/10022/AC:P:19073Thu, 14 Feb 2013 00:00:00 +0000Although it is probably good news that congress and President Obama managed to start the New Year by avoiding going over the fiscal cliff, it is hard not to get a sense that, now that we have avoided that, we can go back to the steady decline that has characterized our economy in recent years. Moreover, while avoiding the fiscal cliff is evidence that our elected officials are not completely unable to work together or govern, there is still reason to believe that congress is not capable of governing the country in a serious way or of addressing any of the myriad problems facing the U.S.Political sciencelam13Harriman Institute, International and Public AffairsBlog postsA Golden Age for Baseball in the Golden Statehttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:156695
Mitchell, Lincoln A.http://hdl.handle.net/10022/AC:P:19079Thu, 14 Feb 2013 00:00:00 +0000Baseball has been experiencing an interesting power shift over the last few years. Just as complaints about east coast bias in baseball coverage became widespread, east coast baseball began to get a lot less interesting. Today California, not New York and Boston is where some of the best and most exciting baseball is likely to be played. Obviously, California has five teams, which is more than New York and Boston combined, but among teams in the northeast, defined relatively broadly, only the Washington Nationals have a good chance of playing deep into October next year. The Nationals are also the only east coast team with exciting young players comparable to those in California.Recreation and tourismlam13Harriman Institute, International and Public AffairsBlog postsObama and the NRA's Waning Influencehttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:156683
Mitchell, Lincoln A.http://hdl.handle.net/10022/AC:P:19075Thu, 14 Feb 2013 00:00:00 +0000Today, President Obama released a broad and multifaceted plan to address issues of gun safety. This proposal all but ensures that the fight for stronger gun safety regulations is likely to be one of the major political stories of 2013. Over the coming weeks and months, the president's proposals will be debated extensively in congress, the media and the blogosphere. Moreover, it is likely that the passage of any new gun laws will be met by legal challenges later.Political sciencelam13Harriman Institute, International and Public AffairsBlog postsThe Filibuster and Electoral College Reform Gamehttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:156686
Mitchell, Lincoln A.http://hdl.handle.net/10022/AC:P:19076Thu, 14 Feb 2013 00:00:00 +0000In the week following President Obama's second inauguration, two issues which address institutional issues in U.S. politics have drawn a significant amount of attention as well as several proposals for reform. These two issues are, of course, the senate filibuster and the electoral college. At first glance these are clearly partisan, with Democrats seeking to change or abolish the senate filibuster to make it easier for President Obama to pass various bills, while Republicans are seeking to change the electoral college to overcome their perceived inability to win under the current rules.Political sciencelam13Harriman Institute, International and Public AffairsBlog postsA New Voting System for the Hall of Famehttp://academiccommons.columbia.edu/catalog/ac:156698
Mitchell, Lincoln A.http://hdl.handle.net/10022/AC:P:19080Thu, 14 Feb 2013 00:00:00 +0000This year the Baseball Writer's Association of America (BBWAA) failed to elect anybody to the Baseball Hall of Fame. This was partially because all time greats such as Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens were linked to steroid use, while other strong candidates like Jeff Bagwell and Mike Piazza were, fairly or not, rumored to have used steroids, too. The steroid issue, however, only partially explains why nobody was elected to the Hall of Fame. The other major reason is that the voting system used by the BBWAA is flawed.Recreation and tourismlam13Harriman Institute, International and Public AffairsBlog posts